Backpack farm aims to help farmers in East Africa
Posted by Craig Clarke
on Aug 18, 2012
Story submitted by Brian Booth.
“We've been called 'the McDonald's of farming'," Rachel Zedeck says with a laugh. The former development worker is the founder of a start-up called Backpack Farm, which aims to help farmers in East Africa grow more crops, more food and ultimately earn money.
"The reality is that Africa is the breadbasket of the world, and in eastern and sub-Saharan Africa, the way to impact the vast majority of human beings is through farming," she says.
It is a simple idea. The company sells smallholder farmers a backpack stuffed full of seeds, irrigation, “green” chemicals and tools along with training manuals and advise on how to farm efficiently. It can cost up to $2,000, but at that price also includes a drip irrigation kit and water tank. Backpack Farm says that while the cost might seem high, it's one seventh of what those materials would cost commercially. And it claims that the pack, used properly, can double or triple crop yields.
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