Complete Farmer

Inefficiency, unpredictability and under-investment are major challenges that plague the African agriculture value chain hereby stunting its productivity. On on end, producers are faced with insufficient access to funding, markets and technology which affects yield quality and quantity. On the other, buyers encounter lack of traceability and inconsistent supply of quality farm produce that meet requirements.

Complete Farmer is creating a system that ensures efficiency throughout the value chain through the use of precision agriculture, climate smart technologies and an efficient circular business model.

Our solution is an end-to-end digital platform that addresses the pain-points of major players across the value chain through a system of collaboration and shared responsibility.

On the platform, global industries are able to source for agricultural output for their raw material needs, producers get access to resources that enables them increase yield and efficiency, and everyday people are able to participate in the value chain.

The motivation behind the start of Complete Farmer is to address the issue of inefficiency, unpredictability and under-investment that plagues the agriculture value chain in Africa hereby stunting its productivity and growth. 

These issues largely contribute to the continent’s heavy dependence on imported food, causing it to spend about US$35 billion annually importing food despite the fact that it holds about 60% of the world's fertile land. They are also the major factors responsible for the agriculture sector accounting  for only about 33% of the continent’s GDP despite the fact that it has an incredibly large agriculture workforce made up of up to 55%% of its population.

With a population expected to double to 2.4 billion by the year 2050 and Africa’s agricultural sector lagging behind other continents, the continent is in urgent need of an agricultural revolution and innovative solutions that will enable it feed itself and the world.

 Our business model combines the use of technology, efficient circular business model and an innovative agricultural production financing model to tackle these issues and produce reliable, quality products at scale to meet this goal.

On our end-to-end digital farming platform, various stakeholders across the value chain (buyers, producers, distributors, and financiers) work hand-in-hand, each playing various roles to meet the end goal of producing quality produce that meets international safety and quality requirements at scale. Our platform is the digital interface where these interactions occur.

The key stakeholders on the platform are:

Buyers: Industries who buy agricultural produce to meet their raw material needs.

Producers: Farmers.

Landlords: People who own idle farmland and list them on the platform. Lands are listed using an Airbnb style business model.

Financiers (crowdfarmers): Everyday people with the financial capacity who desire to contribute to the value chain in exchange for interest.

Service providers such as input sellers, auditors, insurance providers and logistic partners are also present on the platform.

A buyer placing an order is what initiates the entire process. The purchase order is assigned to any producer listed on the platform that is best suited to handle that order. Other stakeholders contribute their quota to fulfill this order and after harvest, the produce is delivered to the buyer and profit is shared among stakeholders. 

Buyers/offtakers: On our platform, buyers can source for quality agricultural produce directly from farms. The platform serves as a one-stop shop for their supply chain needs. From quality audits, to logistics and shipping, other stakeholders on our platform collaborate to fulfill buyers need. IOT connections on the platform offers them transparency and full visibility into the process from cultivation to purchase while our modern farming technologies and data-driven cultivation protocols ensures that we produce crops that meet their quality and quantity demands on a consistent basis. 

Financiers (crowdfarmers): Everyday people are able to participate in the value chain and share in the rewards from anywhere in the world. They do this by providing the working capital needed to fulfill buyers purchase orders. They are able to monitor farm progress via our interactive dashboard and earn a profit from the sales of farm produce to buyers after harvest.

Producers: Producers are vetted and trained in the data-cultivation protocol that Complete Farmer uses before being listed on the platform. They are relieved of the burden of securing land, inputs, capital and market for the produce as all of that is taken care of by other players on the platform.

By facilitating collaboration of various stakeholders on a single digital platform, we help to reduce food loss across the value chain. Our use of precision technology and data-driven cultivation methods reduces food loss at the production stage while our method of providing a ready market for producers reduce post harvest losses.

In addition, we provide small scale producers with access to input, capital and knowledge to improve yields while maintaining sustainability of lands. Producers enjoy access to benefits they would otherwise not have been able to access on their own.

Most solutions focus on a single aspect of the value chain, our holistic approach to solving the challenge of inefficiency across the value chain is a unique one. One that brings key players under one digital "roof". We generate value by connecting consumers, producers and service providers, facilitating automated interactions and transactions thereby creating a network effect.

A notable competitor is Indigo farms.

Key areas in which we differentiate includes:

1. Data-driven cultivation: Our use of data to produce food to meet the specification of global industries is a novel approach to farming crops in Africa. Our data cultivation protocols take the guesswork out of farming, and gives a higher level of precision with the use of minimum resources. These
platforms place little or no emphasis on technology as cultivation is
carried out using conventional methods.

2. Technology: Our interactive dashboard connected to IOT devices
enables monitoring and gives users full visibility into the process from
cultivation to delivery tackling the issue of transparency and
traceability across the value chain.

3. Demand-driven and market focused agriculture commodities production and sustainability.

5. Cost effective and risk mitigated farming for all global and local stakeholders saving up to 35% of losses across the entire value chain.

Using real-time data collected over time, Complete Farmer develops and uses proprietary cultivation protocols mined from this data to decide on when to plant , harvest, and how to nurture specific plants for specific target markets and industries.

Our interactive dashboard uses IOT technology to enable monitoring and gives users full visibility into the process from cultivation to delivery.

The backend of the platform uses proprietary IoT and analytics-driven cultivation and operational protocols and machine learning to optimize Complete Farmers cultivation practices.

Furthermore, we utilize drones, sensors, farm machines and other modern farm technologies for cultivation.

The practice of precision agriculture based on information technology is not a new one. It has been adopted and practiced by developed countries around the world since the 20th Century. Countries such as have used this technologies to significantly increase agricultural productivity, efficiency and production. According to Agforimpact.org, Farmers use this technology to collect, analyze and plot data on productivity levels as well as environmental and soil quality variables in different parts of their fields to apply different nutrients, water amounts and fertiliser mixes in accordance with soil and crop needs in specific locations. This enables them to grow crops that meet specific requirement of the industries and customers.

Why a digital platform?
Platform business models are steadily becoming the golden child of the digital age. They offer customers unique experiences and expose them to new innovations and new ways of creating value. Using digital platforms has helped many companies to rapidly gain higher market share.

Africa's agriculture value chain is broken and filled with middlemen, price fluctuations and resource scarcity. Industries face increasing demands thanks to an increasing population, hence they need consistent quality and reliable supply chain of agricultural commodities. Africa has 60% of the world's arable lands and a geographic advantage to feed global supply chains. Individuals with money lack the skills and time to fully venture into agriculture despite the high returns.

Platform business models are steadily becoming the golden child of the digital age. As they disrupt and dominate markets to create communities, they offer customers unique experiences and expose them to new innovations and new ways of creating value.

Using digital platforms has enabled many companies to rapidly gain higher market share. The utilization of digital tools in the agricultural value chain has enabled agribusinesses and agricultural value chain actors to address business challenges and optimize procurement and business performance.

Value chain digitization brings a plethora of benefits to farmers such as the promotion of financial inclusion, empowerment through transparency during transactions, clear terms of trade and the adoption of improved agricultural practices.

Today

Number of Financiers (crowdfarmers) who have/are currently financing at least one farm in 2020 and earning profit as a result: 55

Number of producers (farmers): 290

Number of buyers: 7

Number of service providers: 6

Next year

Number of financiers (crowdfarmer): 70

Number of producers (farmers): 412

Number of buyers: 12

Number of service providers: 10

In five years

Number of financiers: 150 

Number of producer (farmers): 800

Number of buyers: 25

Number of service providers: 15

Complete Farmers goals within the next year are geared towards
doubling our impact in the African agriculture industry and delivering a
higher level of satisfaction to users.

Our buyer dashboard will launch in September this year.

Complete Farmer will expand its operations to Ivory Coast by the second quarter of next year, which will enable us grow crops that thrive in specific regions of Africa. As the crops menu increases, Complete Farmer will also increase its database on proprietary crop cultivation protocols by gathering more data through the extension of its field sensory networks for specific crop species.

The expansion will begin with some pilot projects in Kenya and Ivory Coast to gain a good understanding of farming conditions in the country, and will expand to other countries in other regions of Africa in the next five years.

Over the next five years, Complete Farmer will optimize farm process automation as well as evaluation technologies. Complete Farmer will built significant brand recognition and establish distribution channels in at least 25 countries in Africa and beyond.

Our vision is for Complete Farmer to serve as the primary digitized value chain utilized by value chain players across Africa.

Financial barrier: The lack of investment into mechanized and precision agriculture farming solutions

Technical barrier: The lack of internet infrastructure on farms.

Market barrier: Land acquisition, language barrier and local laws are barriers to scaling farm operations into new countries.

Cultural barrier: The perception of farming as a menial occupation.

Financial barrier: Establish partnerships with banks and financial institutions.

Technical barrier: Building WAN on farm sites in farming communities and creating a mesh network to support connectivity of farms.

Market Barrier: As Complete Farmer scales, farm operations in the various new countries will be handled by locals.

Cultural barrier: Share stories of farmers that have been able to scale their farms to commercial sizes.

N/A

Full time staff: 21

Part-time staff: 8

The Complete Farmer team is made up of passionate and impact-driven individuals who are not only experts in their respective fields  but are committed to working together to serve humanity’s needs. We offer a working environment that contributes to the well-dhkbeing of our employees and we support learning for personal and professional development. This inspires them to take initiative and invest in the growth of the company - which can be seen in their attitude and approach towards simple tasks and significant projects.

We have partnered with crop research institutions and value chain players and industries. We work with the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research Crop Research Institute here in Ghana to develop plant production protocols and research into crop varieties and production methods. 

We have also partner with agriculture technologies providers to be able to explore models of making mechanized farm much accessible to help farms farm competitively. These include the drone spraying, smart irrigation, and embedded systems, solution providers to enable farmers practice sustainable agriculture. 

We have also partnered with insurance companies and financial institutions to insure farmers from the risk of crop loss due to the impact of climate change and also to access financing needed to provide the capital costs of setting up farms. 

Complete Farmer is building an end-to-end digital platform that makes it easy for industries, globally to source for agriculture output for their raw material needs, and convenient for individuals to participate in the agriculture value chain. The product works with a digital commodity marketplace business model that is driven by data and market demand. The back-end of the platform uses proprietary IoT and analytics-driven cultivation and operational protocols and machine learning to optimize Complete Farmer's cultivation practices and enable stakeholders to farm and produce precise outputs that meet industry specifications by building commercial farms on demand to meet market specifications. The business model is to charge a percentage per transaction between the various stakeholders on the platform and commission on services delivered by service providers.

At complete Farmer, we believe the strategic advice and partnership to solve the challenge of food insecurity. We are applying to solve to be part of a community of problem solvers, get access to funding and partnerships to enable us build our vision. Becoming a Solver would also give us the much needed spotlight for our solution and we would be able to gather the necessary resources to scale our solution. We believe this would enable us gain some traction in solving the problem in making Africa's food value chain competitive to feed the world.

We are building an end to end platform and would need to pull the expertise from academia, research and industry to make sure our solution solves the problem across the entire value chain. Forming partnerships across the food value chain would enable us optimize our solution holistically and also help in mobilizing the need infrastructure that is needed to enhance food production in Africa. We are interested in forming win - win partnerships that align with our vision so we can learn, grow and do great things together.

Complete Farmer is looking to partner with Agriculture technologies research Institutions as well as corporate partners across the agriculture value chain.

Farming in Africa is predominantly done by women. Complete Farmer engages women farmers and helps in building their competence to enable them access a global marketplace. Across the value chain, agriculture is one of the biggest income generator for households. Complete Farmer is able to generate over 1200 jobs for women for every 1000 acres of land farmed, and trains women in using digital skills to grow crops and operate farm machinery.  

Complete Farmer is collecting data on crop production for crops in the African value chain. With about 36 data points per crop, Complete Farmer is developing data driven production protocols that would help farmers farm to precision, minimize environmental waste, and access global commodity markets. The data can be use to grow crops in a targeted manner for special specification. By know the write dosages of fertilizer or best irrigation schedules, farmer can us machine learning and data to engineer their yields and save costs. At Complete Farmer, we realized growing food for specific industries, needs a special approach to grow these foods to meet or optimize these special requirements of this industries. This way, Complete Farmer is making farming a science and is able to make farmers more precise with data driven crop production protocols. 

With data from the food markets, operators, producers and value chain, Complete Farmer is making farmers more productive in growing food to meet humanities needs and changing diets. 

Complete Farmer's end to end approach make the most impact on lives of farmers and many at the bottom of the pyramid. Complete Farmer's activities are mostly in rural areas in Africa, where were are introducing technologies and mechanization services to farmers and giving them access to use these tools for their farms. This brings a lot of economic activities in these areas and livelihoods.These technologies would have otherwise been beyond the reach of these farmers.

Complete Farmer provides employments within these communities and creates a market where anyone in the world has the opportunity to contribute to food production in a meaningful way. Anyone anywhere in the world has the opportunity to be part of the agriculture value chain in Africa and contribute to real food production and trade of agriculture commodities from their mobile devices. Complete Farmer's mission to make everyone who eats a farm has the potential to impact many lives. 

Much of the food produced by Complete Farmer are sold to industries that have a high demand for high quality food for their raw material needs. These industries mostly are food processors who add value to the food and also provide jobs and food for the community the are in. 

Our success is build on the power of shared responsibility and Complete Farmer is building a solution that would impact lives through participation or support of an efficient digital agriculture value chain platform