Kenyan deal maker Christine Mwangi has led AgDevCo Ventures to invest $3 million in Ugandan food processor Newman’s Foods Ltd., deploying fresh capital raised by the specialist African agriculture investor to back early-stage businesses. The investment marks another deal following her successful effort to secure a $49 million first close for the fund in August.

The financing, structured as a mezzanine loan, will help Newman’s expand its processing capacity, introduce more nutritious food products, and bring additional smallholder farmers into its supply chain. The deal underscores AgDevCo Ventures’ growing role in financing early-stage agricultural businesses that struggle to secure long-term growth capital.

AgDevCo Ventures backs Uganda’s food processor

Founded in Uganda, Newman’s Foods transforms locally grown agricultural produce into value-added food products, including packaged snacks, fresh fruits and vegetables. Its flagship Newman’s Snacks brand serves a growing consumer market, while its sourcing network connects the business to more than 3,000 smallholder farmers across the country.

Newman’s supplies thousands of formal and informal retailers and employs over 300 people, making it a key link between Uganda’s agricultural producers and its consumer food market. Its processing operations create additional outlets for locally grown crops, helping farmers reach established commercial markets rather than relying solely on raw commodity sales.

Christine Mwangi, head of AgDevCo Ventures, said the investment would support Newman’s growth and strengthen its work with farming communities. She praised founder and Managing Director Ssegujja Nasser for building a locally owned business with deep connections to Ugandan agriculture, adding that the fund looked forward to supporting its expansion.

Smallholder farmers gain a bigger market

Mwangi, who has worked from AgDevCo’s Nairobi office for more than six years, brings nearly a decade of private capital experience across sub-Saharan Africa. She said Newman’s had demonstrated the potential of locally owned agribusinesses to build commercial operations around domestic agricultural production while improving access to affordable, quality food.

Nasser said the financing would give Newman’s the capacity to meet rising demand, purchase more produce from its farming network and increase the availability of Ugandan-made food products. He described the investment as a vote of confidence in local farmers and businesses, adding that AgDevCo Ventures shared the company’s long-term approach to growth.

$49 million fund backs new deals

The Newman’s deal follows AgDevCo Ventures’ $49 million first close in August, a fundraising milestone led by Mwangi that expanded its East African dry powder. The vehicle tackles a persistent financing squeeze across the region, injecting patient capital into early-stage farming and processing ventures shut out by commercial banks.

With the new capital, AgDevCo Ventures can provide investments ranging from $1 million to $3 million to early-stage agricultural businesses. The structure complements its parent group, AgDevCo, which focuses on more established agricultural enterprises with larger financing requirements, creating a broader investment pipeline across the sector.

Development finance anchors fundraising

The $49 million first close combines commercial loans, concessional debt and equity from development finance institutions and private foundations. AgDevCo anchored the fundraising with $28 million in equity backed by the U.K. Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, providing the fund with a substantial base for its investment activities.

For Mwangi, the Newman’s transaction puts the newly raised capital to work in a business connecting agricultural production with consumer demand. The investment also demonstrates AgDevCo Ventures’ approach to backing companies with established farmer networks, processing operations and opportunities to expand their reach across African food markets.