01
Organizing them into cooperatives or groups
Instead of managing hundreds of individual farmers, we aggregate them into formal cooperatives, associations, and producer groups to centralize communication, training, and quality control.
Rooted in Uganda. Connected to the world.
Ekeva links Ugandan growers with buyers who value fresh, traceable produce.
Explore our produce
From production to market
We train and work with contracted farmers, monitor crops, source directly, and prepare produce for international markets.
“Better market access for farmers. Dependable produce for buyers.”
How we work
Farmers as active business partners.
We work with smallholder farmers for export trade by structuring them through a reliable aggregation model, which ensures international standard compliance and treats farmers as active business partners.
Smallholder farmers
Hundreds of growers across Uganda
Cooperatives & groups
Communication, training, and quality control
Aggregation & packhouse
Sorting, grading, cooling, and packing
International buyers
Compliant, traceable export produce
Our core steps
Six commitments that turn smallholder harvests into dependable export supply.
02
Building trust and fair commercial terms
We treat farmers as business partners rather than charitable beneficiaries. We offer transparent pricing, honor payment schedules without long delays, and provide fair cash incentives or prepayments when necessary.
03
Providing extension and input support
We help farmers improve yields and meet export quality by providing access to vetted seeds, fertilizers, and agronomic training on Good Agricultural Practices (GAP).
04
Implementing post-harvest and cold chain systems
We invest in and coordinate proper sorting, grading, washing, packaging, and cold-storage infrastructure near the source to reduce post-harvest losses.
05
Ensuring traceability and standards compliance
We comply with destination market requirements, such as phytosanitary certificates, residue testing, GlobalG.A.P. certification, and strict traceability records, so international buyers can verify the product origin.
06
Outsourcing or partnering on logistics
We establish a dependable collection route or aggregation center where smallholders can drop off produce conveniently, minimizing transport bottlenecks from rural areas to processing or export hubs.
Grading and packaging for export
Our products go through processing, grading, and packaging fresh for export. It is a structured post-harvest chain designed to preserve quality, extend shelf life, and meet international trade standards.
Stage 1 · Packhouse arrival
Pre-processing & receiving
- Harvesting & field management
- Crops are harvested manually at optimal maturity and protected from direct sun and bruising.
- Transportation to packhouse
- Produce is moved quickly to a collection or packhouse facility, ideally under shaded or temperature-controlled conditions.
- Receiving & dry/water dumping
- Produce is unloaded onto a reception line using dry belts or water-assisted dumping to cushion impacts.
- Cleaning & washing
- Produce is washed or brushed using potable or sanitized water, often treated with mild chlorine (50–200 ppm), to remove dirt, latex, and microbial contaminants.
- Surface drying
- Air blowers dry off the remaining water from the product.
Stage 2 · Only marketable produce moves on
Sorting & grading
- Initial cull / reject removal
- Workers or optical scanners remove unmarketable items, rots, insect damage, mechanical cuts, and foreign matter.
- Maturity & quality sorting
- Fruits and vegetables are sorted by color, ripeness stage, and firmness.
- Sizing & grading
- Produce is categorized into standardized export grades based on physical dimensions, weight, shape, and blemishes.
Export grades:Extra ClassClass IClass IIStage 3 · Removal of field heat
Pre-cooling
- Rapid temperature drop
- Before final sealing, produce is pre-cooled by forced-air cooling, hydro-cooling, or vacuum cooling to drop the pulp temperature rapidly, lowering the respiration rate and slowing ripening.
Methods:Forced-air coolingHydro-coolingVacuum coolingStage 4 · Built for the journey
Packaging
- Primary / consumer packaging
- Produce is packed into consumer-friendly units such as boxes, net bags, or clear bags.
- Secondary / transport cartons
- Packaged goods are loaded into strong, ventilated corrugated fiberboard boxes or plastic crates designed to withstand stacking weight and cold-room humidity.
Stage 5 · Ready for the destination market
Labeling & export compliance
- Product & traceability labeling
- Each box or unit is labeled with the grower/packhouse code, lot number, net weight, country of origin, and destination handling instructions.
- Phytosanitary & regulatory checks
- Shipments comply with destination plant health rules, pesticide maximum residue limits (MRLs), and wood-packaging heat-treatment stamps (ISPM 15), backed by an official Phytosanitary Certificate.
- Cold chain dispatch
- Pallets move straight from cold storage into refrigerated trucks or reefer containers kept at strict, product-specific temperatures until arrival at the export port.
Environmental sustainability
One of our strategies towards sustainable agriculture.
Balancing environmental sustainability and export trade while integrating smallholder farmers requires linking local farm practices to global green standards without leaving small producers behind. That is a step Ekeva has taken.
Key challenges for smallholders in export trade
High compliance costs
Strict Voluntary Sustainability Standards (VSS) and carbon or deforestation rules, such as EU regulations on deforestation-free products, demand certifications that smallholders often cannot afford.
Chemical reliance vs. organic shift
Smallholders sometimes overuse agrochemicals to protect yields, though grassroots movements, like initiatives in Uganda by KRC-Uganda, are proving that transitions to organic alternatives and soil health are possible.
Access to finance
Smallholders produce a massive share of global and regional crops, yet they receive a tiny fraction of global climate and transition finance.
Pathways to inclusive sustainable export we have undertaken
Farmer cooperatives
Strengthening democratic producer cooperatives, which we expect to improve bargaining power, pool certification costs, and support knowledge sharing among farming communities.
Climate-smart & regenerative practices
Adopting agroforestry, crop rotation, and organic management among our farmers to protect biodiversity, reduce soil erosion, and satisfy international green supply chain demands (“environmental upgrading”).
Fair pricing & long-term contracts
Shifting away from volatile spot markets toward long-term buyer agreements gives smallholders the financial security required to invest in sustainable land management.
Indigenous seeds
Using original traditional seed rather than the hybrid seeds currently being promoted, because traditional seeds can be replanted and need far less synthetic fertilizer.
Our partners
Working alongside Uganda’s export and trade institutions.
- HortiFresh Association Uganda Limited
- Uganda Export Promotion Board
- Private Sector Foundation Uganda
- UgExim
- Best Food Importers
Fresh produce. Responsible partnerships.
Based in Sonde, Mukono, Uganda.