Micro-, small and medium-sized enterprises increase supply of nutritious food in local markets

FAO;

Micro-, small and medium-sized enterprises increase supply of nutritious food in local markets

Success stories from Kenya and Malawi

Year of publication 2025

Place of publication Rome, Italy ;

Pages 10 p.

Author FAO;

Publisher FAO ;

Product type Brochure, flyer, fact-sheet

Full item page

Synopsis (short abstract) Micro, small and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs) are key players in local food supply chains, handling about 65% of the food consumed in regions like Africa and South Asia. Therefore, they are a key entry point to promote and increase the local availability of nutritious food and improve the food environment, while being a source for income and employment, and instrumental for the economic inclusion and self-reliance of women and youth.The success stories presented in this publication showcase MSMEs in Kenya and Malawi increasing their production of nutritious food and suppling these to the local markets as the result of a specifically designed mentoring and coaching program. The program promoted their knowledge and skills in production, food safety, conservation and proper handling, diversification of products, and marketing of nutritious food, complemented by general business and financial management skills and reinforced by the investment in basic equipment. The success stories show that MSMEs enhanced their capacities to introduce and sustain strategic improvements that increase their supply of nutritious food; that unmet local demand for nutritious and diverse food bears opportunities for MSMEs; that the mentoring and coaching program, by identifying individualized business solutions, is applicable to all food products and stages of the food supply chains, and that these activities are therefore adaptable to the food system priorities of each territory.

Language English

Related items

Showing items related by metadata.

Book (stand-alone)
Reducing food loss and waste in the processing, distribution and retail operations of micro, small and medium-sized food processing enterprises
A technical manual
2024

Also available in:

French

Reducing food loss and waste (FLW) is an important concern for all stakeholders across the food value chain – from producers, those involved in harvesting, handling, distribution, processing, and retail, to consumers. There is an urgent need to raise awareness and, more importantly, build the technical capacities of micro, small and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs) in the agrifood sector, allowing them to reduce the levels of food loss in their processing and distribution operations. This manual is designed as an easy-to-use, informational, and instructional resource on how to measure and reduce food losses at the MSME level, and to reduce food waste in retail. It presents salient information on:
identifying food loss hotspots and their underlying causes in the processing and distribution operations of MSMEs;
measuring the levels of loss at each hotspot;
introducing simple innovations that are technically, economically, and socially appropriate, as well as good practices to reduce food loss at each hotspot; and
measuring food waste in retail and identifying actions that can measurably reduce the levels of food waste in retail.
Book (series)

Enabling micro, small and medium-sized enterprises to participate in legal timber production and trade
Transformational changes generated by the FAO-EU FLEGT Programme
2022

Also available in:

No results found.

Micro, small and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs) play a critical role in meeting the growing demand for forest products worldwide, with potential to contribute to responsible supply chains that combat illegal logging while promoting economic growth. However, a growing number of countries are adopting demand-side control measures that require proof of legality of forest products. Forest sector MSMEs will require significant support – and changes to the types of support they receive – to fulfil and even take advantage of these new and emerging market requirements and related opportunities. This paper draws from 110 initiatives in 20 countries supported by the FAO-EU Forest Law Enforcement, Governance and Trade (FLEGT) Programme between 2016 and 2022 and seeks to provide examples of how to support forest sector MSMEs cost-effectively and at scale to integrate them into domestic and international legal timber value chains. The initiatives discussed in this paper offer a wealth of experience and knowledge, which can be capitalized upon to boost forest-dependent livelihoods and promote both social equity and sustainability within timber supply chains. Implementing a portfolio of these strategies in a comprehensive support package generate “transformational changes” that help realize the potential of MSMEs to move past traditional business-as-usual modes of operation towards sustainable growth and more inclusive, resilient economies.
Book (stand-alone)

Promoting the digitalization of small and medium-sized agrifood enterprises in Asia and the Pacific 2023

Also available in:

No results found.

Small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) constitute the large majority of businesses both globally and in Asia and the Pacific. Despite their undeniable importance, the literature on SMEs in general, and agrifood SMEs in particular, is relatively limited. One specific area that deserves deeper consideration is the extent of digital engagement of agrifood SMEs along the agrifood value chain, from farm to retail and food services, in countries in Asia and the Pacific. The goal of this publication is to understand the current status of digitalization of agri-SMEs in Asia and the Pacific, what this process looks like and how to improve it. A value-chain approach was adopted to evaluate the digital maturity of all types of agri-SMEs across previously siloed categories – from farm to fork, and in the core and the extended value chain. The report analyses the benefits of digital transformation for agri-SMEs and the challenges they face in this process. Next, the report outlines practical and actionable measures that governments and other stakeholders may undertake to help agrifood SMEs stay ahead in the digital age. Special attention is given to the creation of a digital environment that enables agri-SMEs to increase the efficiency of their operations and allow them to grow. This is particularly important given that many agri-SMEs are located in rural agricultural areas, (where more than half of the population in Asia and the Pacific still resides), but where the environment is less favourable to digital transformation.