Kenyan based agriculture technology and blockchain company, FarmShine has raised $250,000 to develop its platform.
FarmShine is an agritech platform that links farmers with suppliers, information, and service providers by removing intermediaries through a recorded and open distributed value chain. This gives farmers all the details necessary to access the market at a relatively lower cost.
In short, FarmShine brings buyers and farmers together for mutual benefits. The startup intends to cash in on 8 million smallholder farmers in Kenya, 40 million in East Africa, and nearly one billion around the world.
To make this possible, the agritech startup has raised $250,000 from US-based impact investor GMC coLABS. coLABS is an early-stage, investment portfolio of impact investor company Gray Matters Capital.
Speaking to the press, Jennifer Soltis, portfolio manager at coLABS explained the reason for the investment.
“Farmshine’s platform enables women, who constitute 70 percent of its farmers, to receive significantly higher incomes by providing access to completely transparent pricing information before they plant, as well as the freedom to select the buyer they would like to supply to,” she said.
In addition to growing more crops and receiving higher prices, women will receive an economic identity and trade history. Farmshine’s app records quantity, quality and timeliness of each harvest sold, as well as loan repayments, training received, and other indications of a successful, reliable farmer. Based on this, women will be able to apply for small loans, purchase inputs on credit and access more profitable growing opportunities with the entire agricultural ecosystem in Kenya and beyond.
FamShine is an excellent example of how blockchain technology can be applied in creating agriculture technology. With these funds, FarmShine is set to expand its offering to more partners.
This will include working with non-profit organizations and providing supermarkets with derivative products for its customers.
