Our volunteer spotlight series continues, and this week, we're featuring Asif Abass, Managing Director at Bühler in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, whose 15 years in rice are quietly reshaping how millers across Africa do their work.

For Asif, rice isn't just an industry. It's a craft he's spent fifteen years learning, and one he's now found a meaningful way to give back to.

Based in Ho Chi Minh City as Managing Director at Bühler, Asif has built a career around the deep technical knowledge that turns raw paddy into high-quality milled rice, a chain that, when done well, can transform the economics of an entire food business. When the opportunity came to share that expertise with food entrepreneurs through Partners In Food Solutions, the appeal was simple.

"I've worked in the rice industry for about 15 years, so over time I've built up a lot of practical experience. Volunteering with PFS felt like a good opportunity to share that knowledge in a way that could really help others. For me, it was a chance to give back and support businesses in a practical and meaningful way."

That phrase, practical and meaningful, captures something essential about how Asif shows up to the work. His engagements aren't abstract. They produce things you can hold in your hands, point to on a factory floor, or measure on a yield report.

With Sajo Farms and Rice Mills in Nigeria, Asif helped develop quality control standards for paddy purchase, designing standard operating procedures for arrival and inspection, lab reporting, and testing. These are the kinds of foundational systems that determine whether a mill's quality is consistent or chaotic, whether it can negotiate from a position of strength with suppliers, and whether it can grow.

He's also contributed to a resource that will reach far beyond any one project, helping PFS develop customized training materials on rice milling best practices, designed to support rice milling clients across the network for years to come.

And with Fursa Foods, also in Nigeria, Asif tackled one of the most consequential metrics in the rice business: head rice yield. The project's goal, increasing yield from 53% to 60%, sounds modest on paper. In practice, those seven percentage points represent significant additional revenue, less waste, and a more competitive business.

This is what fifteen years of expertise looks like when it crosses continents.

But ask Asif what's stayed with him most through the work, and the answer goes beyond technical wins.

"What stood out most to me was seeing that the advice and training actually led to real improvements. It was very rewarding to see partners take the recommendations seriously and upgrade their rice milling facilities. That kind of result gives a lot of satisfaction."

There's something powerful about that loop, expertise shared, advice taken, change implemented. It's also what keeps him engaged.

"My experience can make a real difference. When you see people learn something useful, apply it, and improve their business, it gives you a strong sense of purpose. That is something I find very motivating."

That sense of purpose connects to a broader excitement about Africa's food sector, a sector Asif sees as full of possibility.

"There is so much potential in the food sector, and it is inspiring to be able to contribute by sharing knowledge and supporting improvement in quality, efficiency, and operations."

It's a perspective that captures why the PFS volunteer model works so well in practice. The continent doesn't lack talent or ambition. What it benefits from is access, to the kind of specialized, hard-won expertise that takes a career to build.

Asif is one of many volunteers helping bring that access closer. Project by project. Mill by mill. Yield point by yield point.

And in doing so, he's helping prove something simple but powerful: when experience crosses continents, food businesses don't just improve. They rise.

Most conversations about scaling a food business start with the technical: equipment, processes, food safety, supply chains. All essential. But ask anyone who has actually built or grown a company, and they'll tell you the harder challenges usually live somewhere else, in how teams are structured, how leaders make decisions, how culture holds together as a business expands.

That's the territory Katrina Blackwell knows well. And it's the territory she's been helping food businesses across Africa navigate.

"I was initially inspired to volunteer with PFS because I'm a values-driven person," she says. "I've always believed that the work I do should connect to something bigger something that helps enrich the lives of others."

Based in Tennessee and serving as Organizational Change Manager at Ardent Mills, Katrina brings expertise that doesn't always show up in technical project briefs but matters profoundly to the businesses PFS supports, the human side of growth. Helping organizations adapt. Helping leaders make decisions. Helping teams move forward together.

It's the kind of expertise that can be hard to come by, especially for early-stage food entrepreneurs navigating fast-moving change. And Katrina has put it to use across a range of engagements, supporting Powerfine in Zambia as they rethought their staffing structure, working with Souk Farm to review and implement KPIs that translate strategy into day-to-day performance, and mentoring staff at Umoyo, also in Zambia, on the HR challenges that come with growing a team.

Different projects. Different geographies. The same underlying need: helping food businesses build the people-side foundations to grow well.

But ask Katrina what's stayed with her most through the work, and the answer isn't about frameworks or deliverables. It's about the people on the other side of the screen.

"The individuals and organizations PFS connects us with are incredibly resourceful and dedicated. Working alongside them has been impactful, not just professionally, but personally. They make me want to be a better person, a more grateful person, and a more giving person."

That two-way exchange, where the volunteer is changed as much as the volunteered-for, is something Katrina has come to value deeply. It's also what keeps her coming back.

"I value the opportunity to share my expertise, but I also appreciate being stretched into areas I might not otherwise experience. It's a genuine growth opportunity for me professionally, and it's deeply rewarding. It feels good to know I'm contributing expertise that may not otherwise be accessible to PFS partners."

And that's true. Because for many of the food businesses PFS supports, access to specialized expertise, change management, organizational design, leadership development, isn't a given. It's often a gap that can quietly slow down growth, no matter how strong the product or the team. Katrina's contributions help close that gap.

What excites Katrina most is the ripple effect. These businesses aren’t just producing food.

"What excites me most about supporting food businesses across Africa is the broader impact. These entrepreneurs aren't just providing food, they're creating jobs, strengthening local economies, and expanding access in communities where opportunities can be limited. Being even a small part of that is something I don't take lightly."

It's a perspective that captures why the PFS model works. Volunteers like Katrina aren't just solving problems, they're investing in the kind of long-term capacity that lifts whole communities.

"PFS acts as an important bridge," she reflects, "between the people who have expertise to offer and the deserving organizations seeking support."

That bridge is built one volunteer at a time. And Katrina, with her conviction and willingness to keep showing up, is helping make it stronger.

Our Global Volunteer Month spotlight series continues and this week, we're turning the lens on Sean Griswold, Senior Manager at The J.M. Smucker Co., a volunteer whose expertise is quietly making food businesses across Africa stronger.

Some people volunteer out of obligation. Sean volunteers because it just makes sense.

"When the needs of an organization match what you're uniquely equipped to contribute, it creates a powerful opportunity to make a real difference."

For Sean, that match was Partners In Food Solutions. And two years and nine projects later, the fit still feels right.

It's not hard to see why PFS came calling. Sean carries over 15 years of experience across food manufacturing and quality assurance, from the specifics of peanut processing and supplier management to the broader discipline of auditing diverse food production systems. That kind of range is rare. But what makes Sean genuinely valuable isn't just the depth of what he knows. It's what he does with it.

Right now, Sean is juggling not one but two active projects with PFS, and both reflect the same instinct: meet people where they are and leave them better equipped than you found them. One of those projects involves supporting the review and delivery of food safety training, helping client teams move from understanding concepts to actually applying them under real-world conditions. Technically grounded. Practically useful.

And that kind of foundation has a way of multiplying. Strong training rarely stays contained to a single project, it ripples outward, building the kind of capability that shows up again and again long after any one engagement ends.

That ripple effect is something Sean has come to understand intimately through his work with PFS teams across geographies. Collaborating closely with technical leads, he's helped shape resources designed to scale knowledge where it's needed most. And in doing so, he's landed on a truth that many experienced mentors eventually discover: "Some challenges are universal while others are completely unique."

It's that tension, familiar fundamentals meeting unfamiliar contexts, that keeps the work interesting. And honest.

But ask Sean what keeps him coming back, and the answer isn't about systems or frameworks. It's simpler than that.

"The people are what make it so rewarding," he says, "especially the clients who are eager and appreciative of the support."

There's something about that eagerness, the energy of someone who genuinely wants to learn and grow, that's hard to replicate in any other setting. It's what turns a volunteer engagement into something that feels less like giving and more like a two-way exchange.

"It's energizing to connect talented, passionate professionals with solutions that can accelerate their growth."

And that energy, when channeled well, reaches further than any single business. It strengthens supply chains, raises standards, and quietly makes food systems more resilient, one well-trained team at a time.

Because real impact was never just about solving the problem in front of you. It's about leaving people equipped to solve the next one on their own.

Our Global Volunteer Month spotlight series continues and this week, we're turning the lens on Sean Griswold, Senior Manager at The J.M. Smucker Co., a volunteer whose expertise is quietly making food businesses across Africa stronger.

Some people volunteer out of obligation. Sean volunteers because it just makes sense.

"When the needs of an organization match what you're uniquely equipped to contribute, it creates a powerful opportunity to make a real difference."

For Sean, that match was Partners In Food Solutions. And two years and nine projects later, the fit still feels right.

It's not hard to see why PFS came calling. Sean carries over 15 years of experience across food manufacturing and quality assurance, from the specifics of peanut processing and supplier management to the broader discipline of auditing diverse food production systems. That kind of range is rare. But what makes Sean genuinely valuable isn't just the depth of what he knows. It's what he does with it.

Right now, Sean is juggling not one but two active projects with PFS, and both reflect the same instinct: meet people where they are and leave them better equipped than you found them. One of those projects involves supporting the review and delivery of food safety training, helping client teams move from understanding concepts to actually applying them under real-world conditions. Technically grounded. Practically useful.

And that kind of foundation has a way of multiplying. Strong training rarely stays contained to a single project, it ripples outward, building the kind of capability that shows up again and again long after any one engagement ends.

That ripple effect is something Sean has come to understand intimately through his work with PFS teams across geographies. Collaborating closely with technical leads, he's helped shape resources designed to scale knowledge where it's needed most. And in doing so, he's landed on a truth that many experienced mentors eventually discover: "Some challenges are universal while others are completely unique."

It's that tension, familiar fundamentals meeting unfamiliar contexts, that keeps the work interesting. And honest.

But ask Sean what keeps him coming back, and the answer isn't about systems or frameworks. It's simpler than that.

"The people are what make it so rewarding," he says, "especially the clients who are eager and appreciative of the support."

There's something about that eagerness, the energy of someone who genuinely wants to learn and grow, that's hard to replicate in any other setting. It's what turns a volunteer engagement into something that feels less like giving and more like a two-way exchange.

"It's energizing to connect talented, passionate professionals with solutions that can accelerate their growth."

And that energy, when channeled well, reaches further than any single business. It strengthens supply chains, raises standards, and quietly makes food systems more resilient, one well-trained team at a time.

Because real impact was never just about solving the problem in front of you. It's about leaving people equipped to solve the next one on their own.

Oluwatobi Osinuga didn't walk out of the Federal University of Agriculture, Abeokuta with all the answers. He walked out with a BSc in Food Science and Technology certificate in hand, a lot of ambition, and the same question that follows most fresh graduates out of the gate, what next?

For Oluwatobi, the answer came through the PFS Apprenticeship Program and a placement at ReelFruit, a Nigerian healthy snack brand that moves fast and demands a lot.

He showed up ready to learn. What he didn't expect was how quickly he'd be called on to actually do things, real things, with real consequences at ReelFruit. Food safety protocols that couldn't afford shortcuts. Personnel dynamics that no textbook quite prepares you for. The behind-the-scenes machinery of running a food processing business, where a decision on the production floor can ripple all the way through to the customer. These weren't classroom exercises. They were Tuesday mornings.

Looking back, Oluwatobi puts it simply: "It was a wonderful experience that improved my knowledge of the food safety management system and gave me an overview of how food businesses work at large. It was incredibly rewarding to be able to identify problems and implement probable solutions that have a ripple effect on the business."

That last part is worth sitting with. Not just learning, but identifying problems, proposing solutions, and watching those solutions actually matter. That's a rare thing to experience early in a career, and it clearly lit something in him.

A career that kept climbing

ReelFruit saw what we saw in Oluwatobi. When his apprenticeship wrapped up, they offered him a full-time role as Quality Assurance Officer. A solid landing for anyone, but for Oluwatobi, it was just the first floor of a building he was clearly going to keep climbing.

Senior Quality Assurance Associate came next. Then Production Operations Lead. And today, he holds the title of Production Manager, sitting right at the centre of everything the company makes and ships.

That's not a slow, comfortable rise. That's someone repeatedly proving they're ready for the next thing before anyone has to ask.

Giving back to the next cohort

Here's the part of the story we love most though. Oluwatobi now supervises PFS apprentices who are placed at ReelFruit.

The same programme that handed him his first real shot is now one he helps run for someone else. He knows what it felt like to walk in green, and he makes sure the apprentices coming through behind him get the same honest, hands-on experience that shaped him.

That's not just career growth. That's character.

We're proud of everything Oluwatobi has built, and we have a feeling this story has plenty more chapters left to go.