The Apprentice: Jimmy Cherutoi
Jimmy Cherutoi’s apprenticeship with Limuru Dairy in Kenya gave him the opportunity to take on meaningful projects that expanded his skills and confidence. One striking example was when he was tasked with designing and sizing an efficient chilling system for their factory. It was daunting to him as a newcomer, but he succeeded at it with guidance from PFS volunteers.
Through the apprenticeship, he also developed skills in production utilities maintenance, machine design, fabrication, and installation. He learned how to draft standard operating procedures and gained insights into food safety management systems like HACCP. His mentorship with General Mills’ Lisa Wacek also stood out as an incredible learning journey which he will never forget. The entire experience strengthened his resolve to be a renowned mechanical engineering expert. We wish Jimmy the very best in his career!
The Apprentice: Kenneth Odjamgba
After graduating with a Bachelor of Science degree in Food Process Engineering from the University of Ghana, Kenneth Odjamgba was placed as an apprentice with PFS client Macks Commodities Ltd in 2022.
Kenneth served as a quality assurance officer during his apprenticeship. The apprenticeship provided him with first-hand insight into quality management and production processes, which aligned perfectly with his academic background.
He also developed leadership and organizational skills, and gained a deeper understanding of how standards and processes are implemented in the food processing industry to ensure consumer safety.
With the guidance of his supervisors, who entrusted him with challenging tasks and offered professional support, Kenneth grew both personally and professionally.
He was also mentored by General Mills’ volunteer Andres Felipe Ruiz who offered him guidance in food product development and helped him navigate real-world projects. After his apprenticeship ended, Kenneth was retained full-time by Macks Industries, where he has continued to grow and make an impact!
Fun fact: Kenneth and another former PFS apprentice, Papa Essel Opoku (pictured below), developed the recipe for Macks Commodities’ new fufu flour blend!
PFS Helps Ghanaian Client Find Inspiration 6,000 miles Away From Home
The work we do at PFS often leads to incredible stories of collaboration. One such story unfolded recently when AgriAccess Ltd, one of our newest clients, visited the United States with a goal in mind: to learn from one of the most advanced sorghum milling operations in the world.
AgriAccess is a Ghanaian company that is deeply committed to transforming the lives of smallholder sorghum farmers in northern Ghana. As the number one supplier of sorghum to Guinness Ghana Breweries Limited, they support over 5,000 of these farmers by creating sustainable markets and improving food security.
Sorghum is an ancient grain, believed to have originated in Africa over 5,000 years ago. After rice, wheat, maize and barley, sorghum is the world’s fifth-most important cereal crop. It is a versatile grain that has several agricultural, industrial and culinary uses. It is gluten-free; contains dietary fiber, protein, and micronutrients such as iron, magnesium, and B-vitamins and is rich in carbohydrates, making it an excellent energy source. Across Africa, sorghum is used to prepare various porridges, snacks, breads and beverages. AgriAccess’ new focus is on processing the sorghum into flour, to feed communities and further strengthen local economies.
While on a visit to family in Georgia, AgriAccess’ Managing Director Prosper Achulo and his team shared their interest in visiting a sorghum mill in the U.S. PFS staff members Staci Seibold and Brian Tregilgas sprang into action. They reached out to our partners at Ardent Mills, who graciously invited the AgriAccess team to tour their state-of-the-art sorghum mill in North Dakota.
The visit was an overwhelming success. During their time at Ardent Mills, Prosper and his team gained invaluable insights into advanced milling techniques, best practices, and innovative processes that could be applied to their operations in Ghana. The exchange of knowledge wasn’t one-sided—Ardent Mills staff were equally inspired by Prosper’s mission-driven approach and his dedication to empowering smallholder farmers.
It also showcased one of the unique (and rare!) ways that PFS connects food entrepreneurs with the expertise and resources they need to scale their impact.
In a heartfelt message following the visit, Prosper shared his gratitude: "The experience was truly valuable, offering us significant insights and practical knowledge that will greatly enhance our operations and inspire new innovations within our organization. The knowledge shared by the Ardent Mills team and the engaging discussions provided us with a deeper understanding of best practices in food processing—essential insights for the growth and long-term sustainability of our business.”
Moments like this remind us that the future of food lies in collaboration - across communities, borders and industries, and by fostering these connections, PFS can help build stronger, more resilient food systems that benefit everyone.
The Story of SITRAV: A Journey from Grinding Stones to Grocery Shelves
“Sheer determination and a series of fortunate events have brought us here”
Madam Glawdis Yao and Monsieur Ngouan Beni Kouame met as young students in university in Abidjan, Cöte d’Ivoire. After some years of courting, the two got married and started their lives together. Glawdis found a job in administration, while Monsieur Beni, with his background in food safety, went on to work with agro-processor OLAM. It was this background in food processing that gave him the idea to set up their own company: SITRAV.
Chili peppers are a mainstay of Ivorian cuisine, but the traditional process of grinding the pepper with a stone was not only tiresome, but inefficient. The mashed pepper would typically have stones and grains of sand in it. The couple decided to start making their own ready-to-use spices. SITRAV began with them milling pepper and spices in the local market and manually filling and bagging it in sachets. It was an intense, tasking process, that yielded only the equivalent of $8 after a full, fourteen-hour day of work.
They needed a breakthrough. A chance publication in a pan-African magazine by a journalist who had purchased their product and loved it led to SITRAV receiving their first flurry of attention. In 2019, they were invited to take part in a competition for entrepreneurs which earned them their first tranche of funding to expand their processing. They participated in further contests which led to more visibility and more capital to invest in their business, allowing them to fully convert their home into a full-time production facility. Now they had the foundations in place. It was time to focus on the technical.
This is where PFS came in, offering the expertise that helps small and medium business like SITRAV to scale. Since 2022, PFS has paired SITRAV with volunteers from its corporate partners on several business and technical projects, as well as mentorships for staff and management. PFS has also placed apprentices who have had a year-long immersion with the company. Two of them have been offered contracts after their stint.
Some of the projects have included a plant layout and modification project that has left regulators and visitors impressed. Another project with a General Mills volunteer helped them understand their business model which laid out the need for them to buy surplus raw materials when prices are low to store for production throughout the year. The project also helped them deepen their understanding of their margins and profit. A Cargill volunteer also helped them on a shelf-life extension project, which led to fewer complaints from suppliers, allowed SITRAV to expand their distribution and gave them access to supply mainstream grocery stores. Additional projects include a Good Manufacturing Practices (GMP) documentation project after which they have successfully passed 3 GMP audits. They are currently working on a Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Points (HACCP) project in the hopes of attaining certification, which will allow them supply bigger companies and multinationals, resulting in a huge impact on their turnover.
SITRAV’s client lead, Bühler’s Marc Zipperle, finds them a dedicated and willing client. "SITRAV is working very hard every day trying to expand their business, make a living, and follow their vision. They have an entrepreneurial spirit that creates value in the community, and it feels great to support and be part of it. SITRAV is dedicated – they literally tore down a wall in the production facility to optimize their production processes.”
Marc says he also benefits from this volunteer experience. “I find the idea of how PFS works very cool. It is a great idea at its core and a pragmatic approach for scaling know-how access for smaller businesses. Also, the cultural exchange is great. I had no previous ties to Côte d’Ivoire and West Africa. Now I do, and having a frequent exchange is a great personal learning experience as well! The client lead role is a role where you can learn a lot from actual experts. You are part of different projects that require different skill sets. I am currently learning a lot about GMPs and HACCP in more detail.”
Today, SITRAV has 20 full-time employees, and 15 temporary staff. In addition to their natural powdered pepper, they also sell other local spices.
Retired General Mills Volunteer Guides Client Through Successful Audit
In 2012, three friends - Jane Maigua, Charity Ndegwa and Loise Maina, who had over thirty years of combined experience in entrepreneurship and agribusiness – came together to establish a macadamia nut processing and export company, with the goal of supporting smallholder farmers and developing local communities in Kenya. The trio set up Exotic EPZ Ltd to create a sustainable and inclusive agribusiness value chain, with a special focus on women and youth.
Like many entrepreneurs across the world, they faced hurdles setting up their business. One of the challenges they faced was finding the right technical and business solutions for their company.
This is where Partners in Food Solutions (PFS) stepped in, offering the expertise of volunteers from their global corporate partners to food processors in Africa. Since 2019, PFS has supported Exotic EPZ with a range of services such as process layouts and development, finance advisory services and mentorships for their management team.
They were assisted in their most recent project by General Mills’ retiree Garry Hellmich, who helped them prepare for an international audit. Exotic EPZ exports its macadamia nuts to several countries, including the United States. To meet U.S. regulations, they needed to undergo a mandatory facility audit by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and reached out to PFS for assistance.
Garry was initially hesitant when asked to help Exotic EPZ prepare for the FDA audit. “I was a little reluctant to accept because FDA audits had changed a lot since I was a quality manager at General Mills,” he said. So, he reached out to a colleague who updated him on the requirements. After his first meeting with the Exotic team, he realized that while they had good food safety systems, they had no knowledge of the FDA. He came up with a plan to modify their existing programs into a food safety plan. “From there, it was just helping them understand the format of an FDA audit, how to interact with the auditor, and how to prepare the factory for the audit. The team was great to work with as we prepared for the audit.”
The audit went well, with only two minor recommendations, and the FDA auditor was impressed with the Exotic EPZ facility overall. CEO Jane Maigua shared, “The audit was a great success, and Exotic stood out as the best company among all those the auditor visited in Kenya. We are incredibly proud of our team, and the support we received from Garry over the period was invaluable.”
Achievements like these reinforce PFS’ commitment to empower food processors across Africa to achieve excellence in quality and safety and thrive in a competitive, global market.