Nourish, grow, eat: Viva Organica’s motto
Evelyn Seltier of Trade Forum spoke with Mmakwena Moesi, co-founder and CEO of Viva Organica based in Gaborone, Botswana. Viva Organica provides sustainable agriculture services, leveraging vermicomposting technology to transform organic waste into high performance biofertilizers.
With irregular weather patterns due to climate change, and food security worsening, the CEO envisions bringing green innovations to sub-Saharan Africa that would reverse land degradation and restore the soils’ fertility. Mmakwena told Trade Forum what this entails – from the power of financial support to providing holistic services that will hopefully lead to a sustainable future.
We use vermicomposting, a biotechnological process that converts organic waste sustainably into nutrient-rich fertilizers, to improve soil health. They are locally available and affordable to farmers.
So far, we have remediated over 100 tonnes organic waste through a partnership with a food retail store that sells fruits and vegetables and a feedlot on which the worm farm is situated. We gladly take their waste for our worms.
We have to pre-compost it before we introduce it to the vermicomposting system at our farm outside of Gaborone. This process takes over 70 days, after which we take it to our processing site in the city, where we ferment the waste, and liquify some of it with natural additives.
I naturally gravitated to studying biological science with a focus on ecology because growing up, I spent every weekend at our farm.
I was curious to understand how organic farming can serve as an alternative to chemical pesticides, and how we can build a balance between the increasing demands of a growing population while living in balance with our ecosystem.
I came across a brochure by the Ministry of Agriculture about the economic and social benefits of vermicomposting. I always wanted to start something of my own, so I used my expertise to build my own business.
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Vermicomposting was still new in Botswana in 2016. With my mum’s support, my partner and I built a structure of boxes from upcycled furniture that hosted the earthworms.
We built prototypes to test on the market, getting a feel for financing and customers. One of the key challenges, which stuck with me for quite some time, was access to land. Apart from funding, hiring people and rolling out a marketing strategy, this was one of our biggest impediments.
While in-between jobs to keep us afloat, we applied for funding at the Ministry of Youth. They provided a grant which enabled us to continue our product development.
This was during COVID-19. It was a bittersweet moment because the communities’ worry about food security helped us break into the market with our fertilizer.
In 2022, we emerged as one of the top 20 winners of the YouthADAPT Challenge. It helped us secure funding of $100,000 which catapulted our business: we hired more employees, expanded our product range, and were able to meet all regulatory requirements.
This shows the power of financial support. For the longest time we were selling directly to our farmers, because our regulatory documentation was not complete, but now we can engage in B2B, retailing our products to Botswana’s big retailers.
Through continuous innovation, we are building partnerships for our agritech solutions that employ artificial intelligence. These solutions help farmers better understand their soil requirements and use best practices so they can implement early integrated pest management or biological methods. Integrated pest management is the foundation of growing crops well as it addresses soil nutrition and builds the resilience of crops pro-actively, taking measures before a pest infestation.
When it comes to combating pests, chemical inputs will give you an immediate effect. That is why they are popular. But they are not sustainable – using chemicals is a “corrective”, not a “preventive” measure. Using organic materials to give nutrients to your soil might take longer, but it is the healthiest way.
I also grew up thinking crop health involved pesticides and chemical inputs, so changing the mindsets of farmers and policymakers is a challenge.
And organic farming is still in its testing phase in southern Africa. But the 400 farmers that are using our organic methods experience higher yields because they encounter les pests resulting from disease. Their soil is healthier.
To get better qualitative data on the efficacy of our products, we are partnering with the Botswana University of Agriculture and Natural Resources. This will be one of our biggest selling points once farmers see the results.
The increase of new invasive pests in southern Africa in the last decade is 100% linked to climate extremes, and they are attacking food security crops like maize.
Botswana is at risk with the rise in temperatures. Insects can reproduce at a higher rate when it’s hotter, which means higher crop loss.
We cannot speak about crop protection without speaking about soil nutrition and the change in weather patterns. Botswana has always been a dry country, so we need to focus on building the health of the soil by reintroducing indigenous micro bio-organisms and trapping moisture in the soil. We cannot operate in silos.
It is not easy going against the tide of established chemical companies. But receiving funding empowers me to access opportunities that will help me to scale my business and gain traction in the market; for instance, by securing land.
Although we started as a fertilizer producing company, we want to build a service portfolio that supports a farmer with the soil’s foundation, providing seeds and a range of bio-pesticides.
We also look forward to forming more partnerships for wider distribution opportunities. We are proud that three months ago, we signed an MoU with RealIPM South Africa, the leading biological control company in Africa.
This partnership gives Viva Organica exclusive distribution rights within Botswana. We are onboarding around 10 products, which I am really excited about. This is new: a sought-after intervention worth pioneering in Botswana.
Out of over 850 applications, Mwakwena Moesi was selected as one of the top 25 finalists of this year’s Youth Ecopreneurs Programme. The programme, implemented by the International Trade Centre and the G20 Global Land Initiative, powers the green and just transition by investing in young entrepreneurs who act as catalysts for sustainable development, environmental justice, and climate action. The programme is anchored in the Ye! community, ITC’s community for young entrepreneurs.
