BY ALBERT MWAZIGHE (Daily Nation)
When the Covid-19 pandemic struck, the demand for nutritious foods that boost the immune system increased significantly, particularly among people with chronic health conditions, who were at higher risk of contracting the virus. Having lived with an underlying health condition for some time, Magdalene Muthee’s mother was among those who really needed to consume foods that could strengthen the body’s ability to fight off disease. “Unfortunately, most of the nutritional products that were in the market did not react well with her body, as she would get an inflammation whenever she consumed them,” said Magdalene.
Since she had a lot of free time, Magdalene decided to do some research on how she could combine different products to form a nutrient-rich porridge flour that could suit her mother’s needs. “She happened to like the porridge flour I made, because not only was it easy on her stomach, it was also easy to prepare,” she said. Over the next couple of months, before movement restrictions were lifted, Magdalene would send the flour to her mother in Nakuru as a parcel, from her home in Nairobi.
As she continued preparing different formulas for her mother, the idea of producing larger quantities of the porridge flour for commercial use lingered in her mind. “Since I could get the products all the way from Nairobi to Nakuru, I thought, why not do door to door deliveries around Nairobi, leveraging social media to market the products.” Towards the end of 2020, she registered Mosoro Afya Flours, branded her product as an immune booster porridge flour and began to market it on social media.
“Immediately we placed the product online, we received so many orders. Some people would ask for products for men, others for diabetics, others for bone health, among other things,” remarked Magdalene. This inspired the entrepreneur to venture into the production of other products such as breakfast cereals, peanut butter and edible oil from nutrient-rich commodities such as groundnuts. “Initially, I was doing all production in my home kitchen, but when we began to get more orders, production became a challenge because we did not have the requisite facilities to meet the demand.” In addition, the entrepreneur did not have the knowledge on how to set up and run a commercial factory for food production, fortunately, a friend of hers had an idea on how she could overcome these hurdles.
“I had contemplated stopping production, but she suggested that because I had good products, I should instead consider attending an exhibition to showcase my products and learn about production,” said Magdalene. While at this particular exhibition, the entrepreneur was able to network with other women, from whom she learnt about organisations like KIRDI and Somo Africa that offer startups the space and machines to do production at a fee.
“I moved to Somo Africa, where we were able to scale our capacity, but it was still not enough because we had to book space in advance. At times we had unexpected orders, and if space was not available, we could not do production,” stated Magdalene. It got to a point where the business needed to move to its own production facility, but getting the money to set up this facility was not easy. It took the entrepreneur almost a year to raise the requisite funds.
“It takes a lot of effort for an SME in Kenya to be considered as investor ready, yet so many people depend on these businesses to sustain themselves and their families,” said Magdalene.
Through her networks, Magdalene had joined a program called Agribiz by the Kenya Climate Innovation Centre (KCIC), which offered SMEs business training as well as connection to lenders. The KCIC connected her to the Grassroots Business Fund (GBF), a global impact investment organisation that was established to help startup businesses grow and generate sustainable earnings. “GBF had rolled out a facility called Jiinue loan, which startups could tap to secure space or machinery for their production activities. I applied for the loan and got it in February 2023,” said Magdalene. In addition, GBF connected her to mentors who taught her how to create structures that would spur the growth of her business. Something as simple as certifying her products for instance, could significantly increase the visibility of her brand.
Fast forward to the year 2025, Mosoro Afya Flours has doubled its output and increased its workforce to 13 permanent and parttime staff. Having certified all their products, the business has been able to expand its market share from individual customers to hospitals, retailers, and other large institutions. “For a long time we have been selling directly to consumers, but now we have got into Chandarana Foodplus and a few other stores,” posed Magdalene. To achieve rapid growth, Magdalene urges budding entrepreneurs not to focus so much on the money, but instead on developing products and services that solve real market problems.
