Meet Emmanuel Luwemba
Join us as we introduce another Rootical Founder-in-Residence, Emmanuel Luwemba. He is the founder of Eden Seeds an agri-business that links farmers to indigenous seeds. Let us explore his entrepreneurial story.
Introduction
Born in the heart of Wakiso district, Emmanuel Luwemba grew up under the care of his Aunt, on her farm. Emma’s upbringing on the farm fuelled his passion for regenerative agriculture, a practice which he has been actively engaging in for years now. He is a father, a husband, and an extension expert, ingrained in transforming the Ugandan food system.
“My aspiration is to be a catalyst in making the food system in Uganda more equitable and efficient by empowering smallholder farmers to overcome challenges like the issues related to poor quality seeds,” Emmanuel affirmed.
Emmanuel (at the left) and Isaac the venture builder lead (on the right) at the Rootical pitch day.
Emma is a self-driven entrepreneur with six years of experience as an agricultural extension officer. Known as “Earthworm Guy,” he established a demonstration farm in the past where he trained several farmers in regenerative agricultural practices like vermiculture, biogas, organic fertiliser production, making bio-pesticides, seed multiplication, soil conservation and water conservation on his 2 acre farm in Wakiso.
He is grounded in his field, with a Bachelor’s Degree in Agriculture from Makerere University and a Diploma in Animal Science. He is a smallholder farmer himself and grows maize, beans, coffee and grazes cattle on his farm.
“My experience as a farmer has helped me narrow down the problems that farmers are facing, for example, the difficulty to find quality seeds,” said Emma. “This motivated me to come up with a practical solution, which is Eden Seeds”.
Cultivating impact
As a farmer, Emma experiences the pains and gains of farming firsthand. This has been one of his driving forces to pursue purpose-driven entrepreneurship. His demonstration farm laid the foundation for his future entrepreneurial endeavors. It was a no-brainer that he would only spread his wings further and, thus, Eden Seeds was founded.
Eden seeds is a decentralised network and farmer-owned seed brand that partners with existing seed producers and community seed banks to multiply and market resilient and performant indigenous seeds.
“Eden seeds is on a mission to share the transformative power of regenerative agriculture and we are doing this through easing access of quality seeds to smallholder farmers,” Emma emphases. “We want to position farmer-reproduced, indigenous seed varieties in agro-input stores, as a valid alternative to the hybrid, imported seeds being pushed onto the Ugandan market and farmers.”
The call to join Rootical resonated with his values and approach. Rootical's methodology aligned seamlessly with Emma's mission to tackle real problems faced by farmers, by working in close relationship with farmers.
This partnership fuelled his aspiration to transition from employment to entrepreneurship, igniting a journey towards creating tangible impacts within the farming communities he is part of.
“Starting my own business has been a lifelong aspiration of mine. Co-founding with Rootical was a great opportunity for me to get the expertise, mentorship and funding that I needed to start my own business,” Emma affirmed.
What success looks like
For Emma, success transcends mere financial gains; it encompasses the ability to empower smallholder farmers by providing access to quality seeds. Through his venture, he envisions impacting tens of thousands of farmers in Uganda, ensuring not only profitability but also regenerative agricultural practices through the distribution of Eden seeds.
By reaching smallholder farmers, promoting agroecological farming practices and championing indigenous seeds, Emma seeks to revolutionise regenerative agriculture in Uganda. The promise of increased income for farmers and improved food security paints a compelling picture of the transformative potential of his vision.
“I believe that Eden seeds will be an impactful business that improves food security, increases income for farmers and nutritious meals for consumers across Uganda," said Emma.
Key takeaways
Reflecting on his journey as a potential co-founder with Rootical, Emma acknowledges the incredible lessons learned. From embracing human-centered design principles to leveraging customer feedback for business model development, each experience has been instrumental in shaping his entrepreneurial success and redefining his business strategies.
“As a co-founder with Rootical, I have learned to work bottom-up, to go on the ground, discover the problem that smallholder farmers are facing, focus on the feedback and come up with a practical solution, this human-centred approach has helped build strong relationships with the farmers I work with,” Emmanuel reaffirmed.
Future prospects
Looking ahead, Emmanuel envisions his business scaling to new heights, with aspirations to serve thousands of customers each season by 2030. His legacy, embodied in the brand of Eden seeds, transcends commercial success; it symbolises a commitment to nurturing the land, saving our seed heritage, empowering farmers, and fostering regenerative agricultural practices for generations to come.
“I envision a future where Eden seeds is the leading distributor of quality indigenous seeds in Uganda, while accelerating farmers' transition into regenerative farming practices.” Emmanuel concluded.
