$17.5 M raised by Nigerian tech-enabled spices exporter Agricorp in Series A funding round

Agricorp, founded in 2018 by Kenneth Obiajulu and Wale Omotimirin, has provided inputs and training on excellent agronomic practices to over 5,000 smallholder farmers, as well as established a 0.5MT/hour spice processing factory in Kaduna that creates value-added goods for the export market.

Farmbase, the company’s unique system, registers, aggregates, and compensates farmers for food sold. In a market where farmers are largely undocumented and unbanked, Agricorp collects data that can help stakeholders make informed agricultural decisions by providing a detailed analysis. It also aids traceability of all farmer activities, from the need for farm input to disbursement to product sales and, eventually, payment. Financial organizations may also use this information to give loans, credit, and insurance to interested parties.

It has now secured a US$17.5 million Series A investment in order to expand its scope and effect. Vami, a Nigerian firm, led the round with US$11.5 million in equity, while One Capital LLC and AFEX provided working capital financing.

The funds will be used to enhance Agricorp’s spice processing capacity to 7,000 metric tons per year, establish regional sales offices in South Africa and East Africa, get food safety and hygiene certifications, increase the employee strength to meet rising demand, and strengthen marketing activities.

“We believe that by increasing our capacity to 7,000MT, we will maximize the potential to boost Nigeria’s forex earnings through export, contribute our quota to improving the Nigerian GDP from agriculture, and serve as a worthy model to African youths who aspire to be agribusiness owners. We want to show them it is possible and very rewarding as well,” said Obiajulu, Agricorp’s chief executive officer (CEO).

AgriCorp’s founders raised US $330,000 in seed funding in 2018, and One Capital has previously invested an unknown sum in convertible notes to assist the firm to grow operations. The firm has also raised multiple debt notes in order to satisfy its working capital needs for purchasing raw materials from its network of farmers.