FOODLINE

If one out of every ten people around the world becomes sick after consuming contaminated food, and over 420 thousands die each year, resulting in the loss of 33 million healthy life years, I stand correct in stating that there is a vacuum to harness food safety for business executives. FOODLINE specializes in Non-GM grocery farming and production lines, as healthy foods are increasingly seen as a critical option for community wellness and growth. We believe FOOD IS MEDECINE; and when people are mindful of what they put into their bodies, they are better prepared to fight possible illnesses, live longer and happier lives, raise healthier generations, and contribute to national prosperity.

Current population growth and urbanization are driving global people to the brink of death, owing primarily to unhealthy and inadequate feeding. In a consumer survey conducted in March 2020 spanning the area of urban Kigali City, 65 percent of respondents reported that genetically modified crops are harmful, toxins, allergens, and genetically dangerous. Rwanda is home to 1.5 million people who are now facing the effects, according to the World Health Organization's 2016 country profile; which represent 12.5% of the overall country population. Obviously, there is a void to address food safety challenges in Rwanda.

FOODLINE is a distribution hand of smallholder farmers whose specialization is Non-GM groceries to bridge the gap between food insecurity, and side effects generated by GMOs. By leveraging on contract management, we supply Non-GM seedlings to our contracted smallholder farmers, purchase the harvest, clean whatever needs to be cleaned, package, and distribute to our brand vendors in public markets for retailing. We use online food retailing to attract a large audience. We use a combination of advertisement tools to push traffic to our digital marketplace, including social media channels such as Facebook, WhatsApp, Instagram, and Twitter. We also reach out to prospective customers through our physical stores and distribution points.

In Rwanda, the effects of unhealthy foods are highest among middle-income population strata, shifting to low-income population strata as national prosperity rises along with people’s awareness of safer and nutritious foods. FOODLINE is focusing on the 7.5 percent of Rwandans who fall into the middle income bracket. They choose to buy enough food that is safe, nutritious, and suits their nutritional requirements and food preferences in order to live an active and healthy lifestyle. Managers, public legislators, and young professionals are among the people that fit into our business niche. 

A couple of years earlier, the agriculture sector in emerging economies was emphasized as a growth cornerstone. In fact, becoming a farmer or a food merchant is not a new market. However, we are more than just farmers and grocery store owners. We are motivated by public health issues to reform agricultural practices and campaign for nutritious and safe foods for the community. We want to improve the competitiveness of non-GM groceries so that they can compete with GMOs on the market in terms of efficiency, but most importantly, in a safe and sensible manner.

FOODLINE has been working closely with smallholder farmers and street vendors in Rwanda since March 2020 to help them make the transition from the informal to the formal economy while also making a social difference in the food sector. We launched FOODLINE, with 1 to 5 households taking the risk of purchasing our Non-GM groceries on a regular basis. We now have 127 households as we mark the close of the prior fiscal year. Today, we have a community of 15 brand vendors and 5 smallholder farmers countrywide. 

We're trying to enhance society wellness by making Non-GM groceries more available. As one of our foundations, we not only market Non-GM groceries, but we also teach the world about how to care for their wellbeing by what they eat. These details can be found on our sales cards, branding documents, and other marketing materials. We still have recipe books with detailed tips on nutritious foods from the farm to the table. People become more sensitive to nutritional additives and possible health consequences as a result of our Non-GM groceries along with strong branding from printings to social media. When people are mindful of what they put into their bodies, they are better prepared to combat possible illnesses, live longer and happier lives, raise healthier generations, and contribute to national prosperity.

Currently, we serve a community of 127 households and aim to serve 1.9 thousands households in the next five years, that's 380 per year. In fact, we need to increase our annual growth rate by 33.4 percent in order to meet our goal in five years.

If there is one thing that keeps us going, it is the impact stories we get from satisfied consumers, but most importantly from the hundreds of people we have already assisted with dietary issues. We maintain a historical record of our beneficiaries, including purchase frequency, preferences, money spent, and reviews, in order to track our company's development and future prospects.

• Full-time (5)
• Advisory Board (1)
• Contractors (15)
• Casual (5)

The Management Team

• Solange IRAKARAMA - Board of Advisor, She holds an MBA in Entrepreneurship and Innovation. In previous 20 years, she had been engaged in business coaching, and consultancy. She is responsible for the management advisory.
• Eric Josue ISHIMWE – Founder and Managing Director, He holds first degree in Finance. In previous 5 years, he had been engaged in business and management consultancy. He provides strategic direction to the company.
• Emmy MUGUNGA – Co-founder and Chief Legal, He holds first degree in Law. In previous 5 years, he had been engaged in legal consultancy, human resource, and research. He coordinates contract management cycle and legal compliance.
• Gilbert NGORORANO – Co-founder and Chief Finance, He holds first degree in Accounting. In previous 13 years, he had been engaged in accountancy, and banking. He controls financial life of the company.

Before starting FOODLINE, we have worked with some of the leading investment, agriculture, and food distribution companies in startup environment. We possess a range of knowledge and experience that will allow us to operate this business effectively. 

We understand that the agricultural and food industry is a significant element of the labor market in developing nations such as Rwanda, where more than 80% of the population is employed in related fields. Given that 70% of individuals working in agriculture are informal, that 80% are women, and that 75% have only a basic education, we applied contract management to assure equitable participation in our employment policy regardless of gender, economic status, education, and so on.

We will be able to achieve one or two of our strategic objectives with SOLVE. As an early-stage startup, we strive for capital efficiency, business exposure, and strategic partnerships. We know that having a platform like SOLVE is a gateway to our company's growth.

We must acknowledge that we require the services of an expert to advise us on financial and resource mobilization tactics to fund our expansion strategy without disrupting the company's financial existence. We also accept that we require third-party assistance to increase our local, regional, and worldwide visibility. Last but not least, we require a senior developer to provide guidance on creative ways to the digital economy.

We want to work with a partner to fill the inputs gap, and One Acre Fund and AGRA are on our list of potential partners to supply non-GM seedlings on a seasonal basis. We want also to partner with BIO AUDIX LLC, a non-GM certifying organization based in Switzerland, to fill the gap in product verification and public confidence. We're still on the lookout for a technology partner to help us with our vulnerability scanning and digital transformation strategies.

According to a recent CBAN report, the use of certain GM crops will affect non-target plants, trees, and water ecosystems, with organic waste responsible for 174 million tonnes of CO2 emitted annually in Sub-Saharan Africa. Obviously, we are tackling the environmental issue by reducing pollution caused by GMOs on the other hand.

We are on a quest to mitigate GMO emissions by continuously producing Non-GM groceries and making them widely available. We constantly train our contracted smallholder farmers to practice Non-GM farming, and we intend to reach a significant number of those who are devoted to our cause over the next five years.

The investment will be used to increase the number of our solution implementers including the number of smallholder farmers and brand vendors (operations) to maximize production and ease accessibility. Part of the investment will also be used to advance our research on agriculture produce and their effect on human wellbeing to explore expansion synergism. The remainder of the investment will be used to further expand our service technologies in sales channels and data processing, such as convenience, ratings and complaint platforms, and so on; to acquire new customers in prospective markets.

To improve community wellness, we want to alter agriculture supply chains by reorganizing the most efficient ecosystem in order to curb GMO-related side effects as well as environmental threats. By doing so, we also create jobs along the chain, from smallholder farmers to street vendors. By leveraging on contract management, we supply Non-GM seedlings to our contracted smallholder farmers, purchase the harvest, clean whatever needs to be cleaned, package, and distribute to our brand vendors in public markets for retailing. 

We recognize the role of technology in the future of our company, which is why we launched our digital marketplace to make our services more accessible to consumers. People can now buy Non-GM groceries online and have them delivered right to their houses. We often use gathered data (tastes, preferences, and purchasing patterns) to assess demand frustrations over the course of a year in order to trigger corresponding production mix. 

The investment will be used to increase the number of our solution implementers including the number of smallholder farmers and brand vendors (operations) to maximize production and ease accessibility. Part of the investment will also be used to advance our research on agriculture produce and their effect on human wellbeing to explore expansion synergism. The remainder of the investment will be used to further expand our service technologies in sales channels and data processing, such as convenience, ratings and complaint platforms, and so on; to acquire new customers in prospective markets.