Masaka Creamery Limited
Description
Masaka Creamery was founded in 2015 and produces high-value dairy products (mascarpone,sour cream, greek yogurt and cheese) with the mission to “delight our customers by producing beloved products, with uncompromising devotion to our values”. Masaka Creamery has grown to over 50 employees, 60% are persons with disabilities (PWD), and is the first majority-deaf business in the country. At the time of hire, many of our employees lack the ability to read, write,speak or sign. Introducing them to our majority-deaf business enables them to develop work and sign language skills while earning income to support themselves and their families. Masaka Creamery’s management team is highly capable and committed to scaling the business, including through the project detailed below, and is supported by the company’s board which includes Rwandan and international experts.
Market Opportunity/ Problem
We are in a unique position today, as our supply is not meeting the market demand. The company has made strategic hires in the last year to develop an exceptional production and management team. We have carried out extensive market research on regional centers in neighboring countries and have identified significant unmet demand for Masaka Farms’ products in particular and high value dairy products in general. Furthermore, over the past year we have introduced our products to these neighboring markets in a pilot-scale capacity and validated these assumptions in a real world application. With increased production scale, new product development capabilities, and updated IT infrastructure (to mangage cold chain and cross boarder logistics) we will be able to provide the markets with sufficient supply, provide local offerings to imported products and develop and empower the local deaf and small farmer communities.
Company Information
Years of operation
6
Type of organization
Private company
Stage of the business
Growth stage
Agribusiness focus
Value addition/ processing
Agriculture value chain(s) focus?
Dairy
Primary country of operation
Rwanda
Other country(ies) of operation
N/A
How many employees does your business have?
52
Does the business have more than 30% women ownership?
Yes
Does the business have more than 30% youth ownership (under 35 years)?
Yes
Financing and expansion overview
How much capital is the company currently fundraising (US$)?
484,375
What is the split between equity and debt?
$588,338 USD Equity and $215,000 Debt financing