The company, co-founded in 2021 by Francis Nderitu and Abigail Gachigi, focuses on connecting supply and demand in the fish and chicken value chains.

Its suite of cooling solutions and a B2B app, Markiti, enable seamless transactions between suppliers and buyers.

The Markiti app empowers a network of shops, outlets, and restaurants to order fish and chicken directly from producers.

This innovation provides real-time demand data to farmers and fisherfolk, improving efficiency and market access.

Operating in Kenya and Tanzania, Keep IT Cool’s achievements were recently recognized when it won the 2024 Earthshot Prize.

Co-founder and Managing Director Nderitu highlighted the impact of the funding:

“Our collaboration with Acumen centers on our mutual commitment to uplifting underserved African communities. We strive to empower these communities by boosting their productivity, improving market access, and minimizing waste, ultimately helping to increase their incomes.”

The startup has already demonstrated significant impact, increasing the incomes of 3,600 fisherfolk by over 15% and virtually eliminating post-harvest losses within its network. Its growing customer base includes 40 supermarkets and 2,000 small businesses.

Keep IT Cool is constructing a solar-powered cold chain facility that will increase its capacity sevenfold.

This expansion will allow the company to diversify into fruits and vegetables and serve over 100,000 fisherfolk and farmers effectively.

The funding from Acumen is critical to achieving its vision of scaling operations across the continent.

The investment is part of Acumen’s Forcibly Displaced People (FDP) Lens Investing program in East Africa, which aims to bolster sustainable livelihoods in displacement-affected communities.

The program, supported by the Conrad N. Hilton Foundation, Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation, and IKEA Foundation, provides capital and technical assistance to small and medium enterprises that support forcibly displaced people and their hosts.

Keep IT Cool’s innovative approach and commitment to community empowerment position it as a key player in addressing food preservation challenges while fostering economic growth across Africa.