From Mango Waste to Millions: How Faith Mumo Built Iviani Farm Into a Value-Added Agribusiness Empire in Kenya

In one of Kenya’s semi-arid counties, Makueni, a region renowned for its abundant mango production. An innovative entrepreneur is transforming local agriculture with grit and vision, through value addition.

Meet Faith Mumo, the CEO and Co-founder of Iviani Farm and Befa Feeds, who has grown from a traditional farmer to a millionaire businesswoman reshaping how Kenya views agribusiness. Through strategic value addition, climate-smart technologies, and empowering thousands of smallholder farmers, Faith is proof that passion and persistence can turn a rural challenge into a global success story.

From Farm Losses to Food Innovation

The journey of Iviani Farm began in 2020, during the peak of the COVID-19 pandemic. With over 20 acres of mangoes, Faith and her team faced massive losses due to restricted movement and a collapsed export market. Like many other farmers, she watched in frustration as mangoes ripened and rotted without buyers.

But unlike many, she didn’t give up.

“We started benchmarking to find ways to preserve our fruits,” Faith recalls. “That’s when we discovered drying as a solution, not only to extend shelf life but to create a business model that could thrive even during crises.” Faith Mumo.

The Iviani Model: Turning 10 Kgs of Mangoes into Ksh 2,000

Here’s where the magic happens: 10 kilograms of fresh mangoes, which fetch around Ksh 200–500, can be transformed into 1 kg of dried mango that sells for Ksh 2,000. This value addition model has become the heartbeat of Iviani Farm’s operations.

Through fruit and vegetable drying, they’ve extended the shelf life of perishable produce from just 3–5 days to over 24 months. And it doesn’t stop with mangoes, they also process bananas, pineapples, leafy vegetables, and more.

The farm exports 90% of its dried produce to countries including the United States, with the remaining 10% sold locally through supermarkets and cafes.

Faith’s story exemplifies how Kenyan agripreneurs can multiply profits through smart innovation and processing.

Powered by Waste: The VIP Machine Advantage

One of Iviani Farm’s most revolutionary assets is the Village Industrial Power (VIP) machine, a dryer that uses agricultural waste to generate the heat required for drying fruits.

With no access to grid electricity, this technology was a game-changer.

“The founder of the VIP machine gave us a loan-based arrangement through Shell Foundation,” Faith explains. “We repaid it over three years using profits from the dried produce.”

This early innovation laid the foundation for Iviani’s export business, which began immediately upon production. As the dried mangoes reached the U.S., word spread, and new international markets opened up through exhibitions and agribusiness expos.

Beyond Mangoes: Building a Climate-Smart Agribusiness

Today, Iviani Farm is a diversified agribusiness enterprise active in three value chains:

1. Fruit and Vegetable Processing: Dried mangoes, bananas, pineapples, and leafy vegetables.
2. Aquaculture (Fish Farming): Through the ASAL Aquaculture Academy, Iviani trains new fish farmers and operates a hatchery supplying quality tilapia and catfish fingerlings.
3. Animal Feed Manufacturing: Their brand, BA Feeds, provides locally produced animal feeds across Makueni County.

Iviani’s farm site in Kathoka, Makueni, is a Center of Excellence demonstrating climate-smart farming, training over 5,000 smallholder farmers, and running programs in sustainable aquaculture. The farm is supported by a mobile processing unit known as the Factory on Wheels, enabling direct engagement with farmers and reducing post-harvest losses.

Transforming Lives in the Community

Iviani Farm isn’t just about business it’s about impact. Faith and her team provide a guaranteed, premium market for local farmers, buying fresh mangoes at 4 times the local price.

Where other buyers offer Ksh 3–6 per kg, Iviani pays 4 times well over that, encouraging farmers to continue fruit production and avoid abandoning mango trees for other crops.

The ripple effects are significant:

• Employment: Iviani employs 20 permanent staff and up to 30 casuals during peak seasons.
• Community Growth: Infrastructure, land value, and local development have improved around Kathoka.
• Training and Empowerment: With partners like EC FPN and NGOs, Iviani offers free training on professional farming, especially empowering women and youth.

Over 100 Metric Tons of Mangoes Processed

As of 2024, Iviani Farm has processed:

• 100 metric tons of mangoes
• 30 metric tons of bananas
• Preparing to resume pineapple processing, with some fruits sourced from Uganda.

By reducing time and distance between harvest and processing, Iviani tackles post-harvest losses at the source one of the biggest challenges Kenyan farmers face.

Lessons from the Ground: Advice from Faith Mumo

Faith has seen both the highs and lows of entrepreneurship. Her advice to fellow young entrepreneurs?

“Don’t go into business expecting to succeed tomorrow. It’s a journey of ups and downs. Be patient, be passionate.”

She also warns against copy-paste entrepreneurship. “What works is uniqueness,” she says. “You can bake mandazi like everyone else, but adding just a pinch of ginger could make yours stand out.”

And to the youth?

“You don’t need big capital to start. We began fish farming with plastic basins. If you can’t farm, hang a beehive on a tree. Start with what you have, even if it only earns you ten shillings today, it’s a seed for something bigger.”

The Vision Ahead: Pioneering Sustainable Farming in ASALs

Faith envisions Iviani Farm as a hub for 10 million smallholder farmers across East Africa. Through on-farm value addition, aquaculture, and climate-smart tech demonstrations, she aims to prove that arid and semi-arid lands (ASALs) can be centers of thriving agribusiness.

With each dried mango, tilapia fingerling, and farmer trained, Iviani Farm is redefining rural enterprise in Kenya. Thus, bridging the gap between smallholder resilience and global export potential.