The Story

Yvonne Otieno came to Sinapis with a desire to change the course of her family’s struggling 1.5 acre farm. “I didn’t have the skills to do farming as a profitable business, and that’s what I got from Sinapis.”

She was losing money before, but all she needed was the right jumpstart. Within 6 months of graduating Sinapis, Yvonne scaled the farm to 20 acres, registered it as Miyonga Fresh Greens, created new jobs, and achieved 30% profit margins.

 

The Impact

Within one year, she was exporting exotic fruit and vegetables to Germany, Norway, the Netherlands, and South Africa. A few years later, those markets expanded to include the United Kingdom, Romania, Greece, Ireland, Singapore, and Spain.

To keep up with demand, Miyonga Fresh Greens works with a network of over 5,000 smallholder farmers who work 494 acres. These farmers report up to a 30% increase in income as a result.

Yvonne keeps winning awards for business strategy, innovation in agriculture, and social impact. She was even selected as one of Africa’s Top 50 Innovators at the 2018 Africa Innovation Summit.