APOLLO AGRICULTURE BASED IN KENYA JUST RAISED $6M SERIES A BACKED BY ANTHEMIS
A Kenyan-based firm Apollo Agriculture with great determination it will definitely maximize its profits by assisting small scale farmers to maximize their farm produce just raised $6 million funds backed by Anthemis.
The Nairobi based firm founded four years ago offers a mobile-based product designed for farmers which provides working capital, the option to purchase core inputs and equipment, and data analysis structured for higher crop yields. Meanwhile, the startup CEO ‘Eli Pollak’ made it clear that effort is put in place for farmers to succeed, adding that the fertilizer and the seeds needed to be planted, expert advice required to manage specific product over the course of the season coupled with insurance against bad year, and funding is the firm’s core concern.
In a bid to bridge these gaps, it’s evident the startup move is to enable these farmers to gain access to the technology and resources required to achieve their results. However, it has engineered its own application, platform, and outreach program that will help establish contact with these farmers. And to achieve this, the startup is currently using M-Pesa mobile money, machine learning, and satellite data as a guide to products and credit offered to these farmers.
Speaking of Apollo Agriculture latest, the startup CEO made it clear that the fund raised will be deployed in various areas, saying: “It’s really about continuing to invest in growth. We feel like we’ve got a great product. We’ve got great reviews by customers and want to just keep scaling it”. Adding that, “The second is really strengthening our balance sheet to be able to continue raising the working capital that we need to lend to customers”.
It’s also important to know that the startup generate its revenue purely from farm produce and that which emerges from financing. These Pollak also added that: “The farm pays a fixed price for the package, which comes due at harvest…that includes everything and there’s no hidden fees”.
The primary aim of the subject startup is pretty simple, and that goal is driven passionately by the co-founders of the firm to boost output and earnings of local farmers within the continent of Africa. Looking at the whole picture and the CEO’s point of view, his academic bar ground and experience overseas actually inspired him to distinguish the output local African farmers are able to achieve yearly compared with American farmers – he sees very low despite acres of land cultivated by these farmers.
While on the other hand, the firm’s co-founder ‘Benjamin Njenga’ made it clear while addressing the audience at Startup Battlefield in Africa held in Lagos, 2018. Precisely on how he grew up and his experience in a Kenyan village with his mother who was a small scale farmer, understanding the implication of low-quality seeds coupled with non-accessibility of fertilizer, added that:
“We knew if she’d used fertilizer and hybrid seeds her production would double, making it easier to pay my school fees”.
Meanwhile, this round of funding was led by Anthemis Exponential Ventures’ Vica Manos, while additional investors in Apollo Agriculture’s latest round include Accion Venture Lab, Flourish Ventures, and Leaps by Bayer.
Lastly, the startup CEO also made it clear that his firm could partner with Twiga Foods in future, adding that the subject startup is focused on partnering with farmers to produce lots of high quality crops.
What is your take as Apollo Agriculture raises the said sum?
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