Two Kenyan enterprises join Pan-African accelerator for nature-based businesses

Acacia EPZ, an exporter of gum arabic, and ForestFoods, an agroforestry enterprise, are among five businesses selected for the inaugural Nature-First Innovation Lab (NFIL), which is targeting about USD 10 million in collective fundraising.

The programme is run by FSD Africa in partnership with Systemiq and the African Natural Capital Alliance (ANCA), with support from UK International Development and the Norwegian Agency for Development Cooperation (Norad).

The accelerator will provide grants and technical support to help the selected enterprises strengthen their financial planning, governance and measurement of environmental impact, while connecting them with potential investors.

Acacia EPZ, founded in 2015 by Sam Ombogo Nyamboga, exports gum arabic, a natural ingredient used in soft drinks, confectionery and medicines. The company sources the product through collectors, more than 70 per cent of whom are women whose livelihoods depend on healthy acacia woodlands.

The enterprise is positioning itself as a traceable, conflict-free supplier amid disruptions to Sudan's gum arabic supply. Its revenues have grown by 56 per cent over the past two years, according to the programme organisers.

Nyamboga said the selection recognised the company's approach of linking forest conservation with income generation for communities involved in harvesting gum arabic.

“Being selected for the Nature-First Innovation Lab is a real milestone for us. It recognises what we've believed since day one: that keeping Kenya's acacia woodlands standing and building genuine incomes for the families who harvest from them are the same task, not competing ones. The world needs a source of gum arabic it can trust, one that isn't tied to conflict, and that is exactly what we are building,” he said.

ForestFoods, meanwhile, uses syntropic agroforestry, a farming approach that integrates trees, crops and livestock to regenerate soil and support agricultural production.

The enterprise operates farms near Limuru, Naivasha and Naro Moru and is developing a new site at Shimba Hills. It plans to use the programme to strengthen its business model and expand links between farms, growers, processing, training and markets.

ForestFoods co-founder and chief executive Sven Verwiel said the accelerator would help the company secure investment and partnerships to support its expansion.

“Our ambition is to show that producing good food, restoring landscapes and creating meaningful livelihoods can go hand in hand with building a commercially successful business,” he said.

The other businesses selected for the cohort are Forested, which works with smallholder farmers in Ethiopia, Kenya and Uganda to supply regenerative honey, beeswax, shea butter and oils to international beauty brands; Tanzania's NovFeed, which converts organic waste into fish feed and fertiliser; and Ghana's Savanna Agri Chains, which sources and exports shea butter and baobab products through a network of more than 1,000 women harvesters across 22 districts.

According to FSD Africa and McKinsey Sustainability research cited by the programme, an estimated 62 per cent of Africa's gross domestic product depends on nature.

However, businesses that incorporate environmental protection and restoration into their operations often face difficulties securing the financing needed to scale up.

Dorothy Maseke, head of the ANCA Secretariat and lead for Nature Finance and the Taskforce on Nature-related Financial Disclosures at FSD Africa, said many African enterprises struggled to attract commercial capital despite having viable business models.

“A growing number of African enterprises reach technical feasibility and then stall because revenues aren't sufficiently anchored, governance is not investment-grade, and documentation is incomplete,” she said.

Maseke said the programme was designed to bridge the gap between grant funding and commercial investment by preparing established, revenue-generating businesses to meet investor requirements.

NFIL will not take equity in the participating businesses. Instead, it will focus on improving their investment readiness and helping investors assess their potential.

The first cohort focuses on regenerative supply chains, with programme organisers pointing to an estimate by Boston Consulting Group that regenerating the world's 30 most valuable landscapes represents a USD 310 billion commercial investment opportunity.

The programme aims to demonstrate how enterprises that depend on healthy forests, land and soils can grow commercially while supporting environmental restoration and livelihoods across Africa.