Overview

Samaking Foods is transforming Africa’s fish value chain from pond to plate by building a modern, climate resilient cold chain and market distribution system that empowers smallholder farmers, strengthens women led micro enterprises, and delivers affordable, high quality fish to consumers. Our mission is to make fish the number one accessible and nutritious protein on African plates while increasing incomes for the people who produce and trade it.

Fish is the fastest growing animal protein in Africa. However, more than 35 to 45 percent of harvested fish is lost before it reaches consumers because of fragmented logistics, poor handling, unreliable cold storage, and lack of market coordination. These losses reduce farmer incomes, increase consumer prices, and contribute to significant greenhouse gas emissions because resources used to produce the fish are wasted. At the same time, women fish traders known as Mama Samakis are central to local distribution but face unstable supply, limited working capital, and unsafe handling environments which restricts their earnings.

Samaking addresses this by building solar powered cold chain hubs that allow farmers and women traders to store, aggregate, and distribute fish under controlled temperatures. These hubs form a coordinated supply network that integrates harvesting, handling, aggregation, and direct market access. Fish is collected from farmers, chilled immediately, processed hygienically where needed, and delivered through refrigerated trucks and insulated motorcycle boxes to retailers, supermarkets, hotels, and households.

Our cold chain system is integrated with a digital ERP and a mobile based inventory and payments platform that enables real time traceability, stock visibility, and predictable payments. This reduces spoilage by up to 30 percent and stabilizes income for farmers and traders. Farmers also benefit from advisory services, better feed and fingerlings, and structured off take agreements that help them plan production with confidence.

Samaking also strengthens the economic position of Mama Samakis by providing training in hygiene, pricing, record keeping, and safe handling, along with reliable supply access. This supports small business growth and reduces income volatility for thousands of women.

The climate impact is direct and measurable. Reducing post harvest losses lowers emissions embedded in wasted production. Solar powered cold rooms reduce reliance on diesel generators. Increasing access to fish promotes a shift toward lower emission protein sources, which reduces pressure on land intensive livestock systems.

Our model is commercially scalable. Urban demand for fish is rising. Cold chain hubs are modular, cost efficient, and strategically located near both production and consumer markets. As we expand, we capture efficiency gains in procurement, processing, and logistics.

We are now seeking strategic investment and blended finance partnerships to expand cold chain hubs in Kenya, scale digital systems for farmer and trader networks, and strengthen distribution into high growth markets. Together, we can build a food system that is nutritious, climate smart, and economically inclusive, creating value and resilience across the communities we serve.

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