How does a trusted and timeless brand scale up without losing the quality and beloved taste that made it a household name?
CPA Daniel Musiu, General Manager of Finance at Farmer’s Choice, provides the answer. In this interview, he outlines the financial strategy behind the company’s growth, detailing how intelligent automation and a clear sustainability roadmap, including a goal for net-zero emissions by 2030, are securing its future. This is a direct look at the business discipline behind the taste Kenyans love and how it’s being built to compete across East Africa, the Middle East, and future global markets.
Over the past forty years, and morerecently, what would you highlight asFarmer’s Choice Limited’s (FCL) mostsignificant financial and operationalachievements?
From humble beginnings as a small butchery, Farmer’s Choice has grown into the region’s leading producer of fresh and value-added meat products. Our unwavering commitment to quality and taste has earned us market leadership and a special place in the hearts of consumers. It’s no surprise that many Kenyans and even global citizens pack a few Farmer’s Choice sausages in their bags when travelling abroad, a true testament to the trust and love our brand continues to inspire. This has been enabled through innovation, mechanization and automation of our processes, making our products affordable to consumers.
Farmer’s Choice takes pride in being a trusted partner to livestock farmers, including pigs, cattle, lambs, goats, and poultry farmers. This unwavering
commitment empowers farmers with financial stability and sustains livestock
farming in Kenya by providing a predictable and assured market. A partnership drives confidence, growth, and prosperity across the agricultural value chain.
Lastly, the company’s greatest strength lies in its people. The Farmer’s Choice
family has a remarkable work ethic that results in efficiency in tasks performed,
and the dedication to work ensures objectives are met. This sets the company
apart as a global meat player with products consumed worldwide.
Shifting focus slightly to your own path, your background spans finance
leadership roles. What motivated your transition into the agriculture/food production sector with Farmer’sChoice, and how have this industry’sunique dynamics shaped your approachas a Finance GM compared to othersectors?
I started my career within the FMCG space, from a junior Trainee Accountant to a Management Accountant at Unilever’s Foods Division, and detoured to Oil marketing. I served four years in Kenya and three in Rwanda, rising to the Head of Finance. Most recently, before joining the company, I was the CFO at NAS Airport Services Limited, a leading catering service provider to airlines and blue-chip companies. My move to Farmer’s Choice did not feel different; it was an extension of what I have been doing over the years. However, it is quite a unique challenge due to the complexity of the company’s operations.
Looking back at your career journeybefore joining Farmer’s Choice, what oneor two key experiences or roles provedmost formative in preparing you for thecomplexities of this GM Finance position,particularly within a large, integratedoperation like Farmers Choice?
My training at Unilever significantly impacted my understanding of factory and stock management operations. At the same time, my stay at Rubis strengthened my knowledge of finance from the aspect of treasury and working capital management. When I joined NAS Servair, I added local and regional responsibilities that allowed me to grow into a strategic leadership role that enhanced my knowledge in finance. Hence, I am fully prepared for my current role – to drive the strategic direction of Farmer’s Choice. During the COVID-19 crisis, I was a CFO within the aviation industry, where we experienced significant business turbulence. I played a key role in helping steer the company back to profitability. This experience sharpened my ability to deal with complex issues and has given me the confidence to take on unique challenges. Simply put, I am equal to the tasks ahead.
What has been the most significantprofessional challenge or learningcurve you’ve navigated since takingon the GM Finance role at Farmer’sChoice, and what key lesson did youtake away from that experience?
When I joined, I quickly realized the complexity of the company’s value chain. It is a full-spectrum vertical integration with operations spanning multiple industries, including livestock rearing, animal feed production, fresh meat production, value addition and market distribution. Farmer’s Choice has a wholly owned division that raises pigs, which supplements the availability of livestock from farmers. Within the division, the company manufactures animal feeds for internal use and sale to farmers in the country. The organization produces a wide range of fresh and valueadded meat products that rank top in the market due to good quality and taste. In addition, we also control the distribution channels to ensure customers receive products on time and of the right quality.
As a finance leader for many years, I have learnt to be agile and adaptive. I understand this role is not just about managing a company’s finances but I must also play a key stewardship role in balancing all stakeholder needs. I have to align the business’s financial reporting needs by being inclusive while remaining visionary for the long-term growth and success of the company.
As a CPA and Finance leader whohas risen to GM level, how wouldyou describe your core leadershipphilosophy within the finance function?How do you balance technical financialrigour with the business’s broaderstrategic and operational demands?
My leadership is firmly grounded in integrity, professionalism, strategic insight and cross-functional collaboration to ensure company objectives are well aligned and goals achieved. I am a purpose-driven leader who aims to empower and nurture my team by mentoring and upskilling them. My team must be better at what they do, which helps set a strong finance foundation in the organization. In my role, I have established strategic partnerships with other business functions, ensuring that every initiative or plan is financially sound. Additionally, I strive to create an environment with open and honest communication. I use data intelligently across the entity to increase efficiency, mitigate risks, fuel innovation and ensure timely decision making.
Farmer’s Choice is an exceedingly well-known brand throughout Kenya.
How has the company managed to maintain its market leadership in such
a competitive industry?
Our excellence in the market is rooted in providing our customers with quality
products that suit their tastes and preferences, a journey of over forty years that has created a sense of authenticity and trust amongst our customers. We have a diversified product range, which ensures we cater to a wide range of consumer needs, and the consistency over time in delivering on quality has helped build a strong brand heritage that gives us a competitive edge in the market. We also ensure that products are available to the customers in a desirable state, even though they are highly perishable. Most critically, we offer support to our business partners, including vendors and distributors, since they are the foundation that helps us broaden our reach to consumers.
What are Farmer’s Choice’s most significant financial and operational challenges in the Kenyan and regional markets?
The manufacturing aspect of this business is complex, and very few companies in the world get to that level of depth. Like any other business in the current operating environment, we have encountered challenges due to the ever-changing legal and regulatory environment, which poses several challenges, especially for long term planning. Additionally, we must remain vigilant in ensuring we adhere to food safety standards and follow all regulations across multiple jurisdictions.
How have fluctuations in input costs,such as feed for your farmers andelectricity and fuel costs, affected thecompany’s profitability?
These and a reduction in purchasing power impact the company’s profitability. However, mitigating initiatives around innovation have kept the business on an upward trajectory. Our continued positive engagement with farmers has helped us navigate the challenges of increased input costs. Additional measures through sustainability initiatives, e.g., investment in biomass boilers, solar panels, and electric vehicles, will help us continue mitigating rising operational costs in the long run.
To what extent have supply chaindisruptions or global market trendsimpacted your operations in the past fewyears, especially during and immediatelyafter the COVID situation?
We have successfully managed imports, thereby avoiding disruptions in production. This is due to several mitigating factors, including having sufficient forex reserves, developing strategic partnerships with our global suppliers to ensure a steady supply of materials at favourable prices, planning and proper EOQ management, and strategically sourcing to reduce the risk of supplier control. However, we experienced challenges in the export market where some countries imposed restrictions on food exports, but that has now reversed. In the region, we continue to struggle with uncertainties in trade policies, which occasionally affect sales, but we remain agile and compliant with all regulations.
How is Farmer’s Choice adaptingto changing consumer preferencestowards healthier and alternativeprotein products?
FCL has a diverse product portfolio that caters to all consumer needs; from fresh beef, fresh pork, lamb, poultry and fish to value-added meat products, and emphasizes hygienic practices that align with the health-conscious consumers.
We are, however, cognizant that consumers are demanding alternative proteins,
which means we must actively lead the market in product innovations, including working with global partners to help change our product inputs and devising
innovative ways of adding value to the products, without compromising
on quality or health standards.
What challenges do you face balancing business growth with regulatory compliance and food safety standards?
Farmer’s Choice navigates a complex regulatory landscape and must continuously evolve to meet the market realities of changing consumer preferences and growing food safety standards. As a leading meat producer, we manage escalating operational costs associated with compliance to ensure consistent product quality and safety across large volumes, adhere to specific import regulations, implement comprehensive traceability from farm to plate, and navigate diverse international market requirements. In our growth strategy, we have embedded these challenges to build resilience and brand equity in the long term.
Looking ahead, what are the top three priorities for Farmer’s Choice in ensuring sustainable growth?
Our key priority is maintaining strong ethical business practices that guide the business’s orientation and strategic direction. Secondly, we focus on operational excellence and innovation, including digital industry transformation alongside lean manufacturing processes, and leading innovation for market expansion and better customer engagement. Lastly, we are committed to environmental sustainability and will become a net-zero-emitting company by 2030. With respect to this, we are working jointly with our group to implement several sustainability initiatives, including installing biomass boilers, extensive use of solar power, and electric vehicles, all helping us reduce operational costs while
promoting green energy.
How does the company address increasing competition from local producers and imported meat products?
We have developed strategies to protect our market leadership, which include continuous innovation and product differentiation. We have also ensured proper market segmentation and brand differentiation by having suitable products for each market. Thirdly, we reinforce our brand equity through marketing to increase consumer awareness about the company’s products and relentlessly engage with consumers to understand their evolving needs.
What role do you see technology and automation playing in the future of
Farmer’s Choice’s production and finance operations?
Technology will continue to transform consumer experience and streamline
operations to achieve efficiency and productivity within the supply chain.
Digital innovation is a strategic pillar in our growth model, guiding various business functions in data-driven decision-making through real-time operations monitoring. Further automation of manufacturing processes will ensure we remain price competitive without compromising on quality.
How is the company preparing to navigate potential macroeconomic challenges, such as inflation or currency fluctuations?
Through strategic planning for the future, Farmer’s Choice is prepared to navigate the current operating environment despite adverse changes in macroeconomic pressures. These measures include proper cost management and capitalizing on our core strengths, which give us a competitive edge. We remain and pride ourselves on being very adaptable to changes, including macroeconomic challenges. These measures will help the company stay resilient and achieve its long-term strategic goals.
