Coco Vita
Kenya’s Natural Coconut Oil
Coco Vita is a social enterprise that is supporting and empowering Kenyan real coconut farming communities with producing cold-pressed Extra Virgin Coconut Oil locally. They aim to providing an efficient, fair and reliable market, spurring rural industrialization and creating decent local job opportunities.
Their long-term goal is becoming a sustainable globally recognized enterprise, Africa’s premier manufacturer of high quality and authentic coconut derived products for both local and international markets.
Status: Fundraising
Head office: Kaloleni, Kenya
We are a social enterprise operating in a rural area of Kilifi, working closely with hundreds of small scale farmers, supporting their livelihood in the process.
Key Facts
Partnering Farmers
Jobs Created
Impact
Economics
- Sustainable income for farming communities through value addition at farm level
- Benefiting of direct link to local and international markets
Climate
- Reforestation of coconut trees
- Agro-processing and clean manufacturing
- Establishing circularity and developing local supply chains
Social
- Women and youth empowerment
- Encourage farmer organisation to access training to ensure crop longevity and capacity building for better yields
Why Coco Vita?
Kenyan coastal farmholds are lacking resources to turn the nuts into value-added products and to sell them to stable markets. That’s where Coco Vita comes in.
Coco Vita is setting up production facilities, supply and distribution chains and financial and organizational support systems that help make more out of the most universal yet underutilized natural good.
They pay farmers and wages twice the rate compared to local brokers, which is impacting thousands of livelihood. Furthermore, they favor long-term partnerships with farmers and the aggregation of farming communities for quality, traceability purposes and reliability of supply.
Coco Vita encourages farmer organisation to access training to ensure crop longevity and capacity building for better yields.
The quality of Extra Virgin Coconut Oil of Coco Vita ensures the opportunity of a direct link to local and international markets. The oil is carefully cold processed, preserving all vital nutrients, bringing a powerful superfood and beauty powerhouse with antiviral, antifungal and anti-bacterial properties.
- 100% natural with a mild coconut scent
- Nutrient packed with powerful nourishing & hydrating properties
- Smooth & Light for excellent absorption
- Healthy to eat, gentle on the skin
Learn more about Coco Vita Product’s at their homepage.
I believe a social entrepreneur is someone, who can solve social problems in a sustainable manner.
With this ethos of impact, partnership and sustainability, Joan sits at the helm of Coco Vita.
Paired with over 10 years of experience in supply chain management, this makes for a wonderful leader in turning one of Kenya’s most prevalent resources into one of its biggest, most sustainable business builders and job creators: The humble coconut; an idea that was born when Joan saw a woman-farmer in Kilifi County selling unrefined coconut oil.
Female power and ingenuity: The forces of our futures, not just in Kenya.
The social background
Over 80% of Kenyan coastal farmholds directly or indirectly derive their livelihoods from coconuts. But barely and poorly. 62% still live in poverty, which means they have below 2$ a day for living. This is caused by predatory middlemen, the lack of resources to turn the nuts into value-added products and stable markets to sell to. The predatory middlemen act within a price driven, informal commodity brokerage environment which tent to push fregmentation and isolation of farmers to ensure lower procurement costs. Furthermore, capacity building by re-investment or promoting good harvest practices are not enforced.
Meet the Founder
Joan Masakha
Founder & CEO of Coco Vita
Joan is one of the Founders and CEO of Coco Vita Limited. She is a Bachelor of Commerce graduate with over 10 years working experience in supply chains of multinational oil organizations. She has worked extensively as an accountant/supply chain professional in a career. In her various positions, she created and operated systems that impacted financial information that trailed marks of success making a distinguished career spanning time and geographical boundaries and aiding in decision making. Joan is passionate about rural industrialization and community empowerment. She is all about making every coconut count.
Marko Rovagnati
CMO of Coco Vita
Marco is a social entrepreneur having launched POAPOA an ethical skin care brand in UK and Ghana. He is a freelance and innovation consultant that helps agencies and corporate clients better understand their customers through qualitative insights while translating those into actionable strategic advice. He is a MSc Development Management graduate and winner of the London School of Economics Generate Funding Competition for Social Entrepreneurs. Passionate about African Development, Anthropology, Video Making, Coconuts Processing and ECommerce. Marco supports Coco Vita remotely from Portugal and regularly visits Kenya to help with market research branding and other sales and marketing activities.
Our other ventures
WashKing
Ghana
Biodigester toilets for underprivileged communities
Gjenge Makers
Kenya
Building materials from plastic waste
Give with impact!
Your donation creates jobs and prospects for people who curently live of less than 2$ a day!