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Overview
Overview
Across Africa, rich food traditions offer powerful solutions to today’s challenges—yet many communities still face barriers to nutritious, affordable, and climate-resilient diets. At Tailored Food, we work alongside entrepreneurs who are reimagining local food systems from the ground up. Our focus is on supporting youth- and women-led ventures that blend indigenous knowledge with modern approaches. From banana-leaf wrapped indigenous protein bars in Congo, to fermented porridge stalls in Liberia, to peanut butter micro-enterprises in Mozambique, we help scale nutritious, culturally relevant foods that are accessible and locally sourced. Our ambition is to transform everyday food environments by empowering community-based innovation. We provide tools, training, and storytelling platforms to amplify the reach and impact of these entrepreneurs—so they can influence diets, livelihoods, and local economies.
By investing in the people and ideas already shaping Africa’s food future, we’re helping build a system where better diets aren’t imported—they grow from the ground up.
Key actors
Key actors
Local food entrepreneurs – especially women and youth creating nutritious, culturally rooted products in their communities.
Community-based food producers – smallholder farmers, processors, and vendors supplying indigenous and climate-resilient ingredients.
Tailored Food team – providing tools, training, and storytelling to support product development, market access, and business growth.
Local consumers – preferences, needs, and traditions shape demand and drive change in food environments.
Allied organizations – local NGOs, innovation hubs, and nutrition advocates co-creating supportive ecosystems for food innovation.
Alignment with the EAT-Lancet Commission
Alignment with the EAT-Lancet Commission
Our work aligns with the EAT-Lancet Commission by advancing diets that are both healthy and environmentally sustainable, rooted in diverse, plant-forward, culturally relevant foods. We track progress through concrete metrics: meals purchased and consumed, jobs created (particularly for women and youth), and economic value generated in rural communities. These indicators show how nutritious, locally sourced food can drive inclusive growth. A Gates Foundation-funded research study is currently validating our impact across multiple countries, helping us quantify dietary improvements, business sustainability, and community-level change—ensuring our model supports both planetary and human health at scale.
Lessons Learned
Lessons Learned
A key insight from our work is that families everywhere—rural or urban—value the agency of choice in what they eat. Nutritious food shouldn't be confined to health clinics or aid programs; it should be part of daily life. We’ve learned that when local, healthy options are available at roadside shops and market stalls, people choose them. The challenge lies in making these options visible, affordable, and embedded in everyday food environments.
Next steps
Next steps
Expand regional partnerships with African incubators, farmer cooperatives, and women-led food networks to support more entrepreneurs and deepen rural sourcing.
Strengthen data and storytelling tools so local ventures can track impact, communicate value, and influence consumer and policy narratives.
Secure catalytic funding to scale proven models and bring nutritious, culturally rooted products into mainstream markets.
Collaborate with research institutions and policy champions to integrate community-driven food innovation into national food system strategies.
For more information contact: Taylor Quinn at taylor@tailoredfood.org
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