Farah Emara

31 / Giza, Egypt

Egyptian Farah Emara’s innovative work can be expressed in simple numbers. In a country where food loss average for producers is 45%, through her company FreshSource she has lowered the rate for her users to just 5%. Not only this, but FreshSource also increases farmers’ income by 20% on average and lowers their costs by 15%.

It all started when Farah and her brother Omar discovered that poor harvesting, transportation and storage were impacting Egyptian farmers to the point that nearly half of their produce was lost before it even hit the shelves. On top of this, farmers were missing out on potential income due to middlemen not paying fair prices and inflating the costs.

Farah decided to apply her background in business, economic development and management to this issue. In 2018, she co-founded FreshSource and started out by analysing data on market demand and prices to guarantee the best value for money for producers. The company now works directly with small farmers who lack access to the market and helps them grow and sell high quality products, eliminating the need for middlemen. The farmers’ produce is then sent to the FreshSource warehouse, where it’s stored, packaged and shipped to restaurants, hotels, factories and hospitals according to demand, vastly reducing food loss and waste.

Her innovative work applying data and technology to the food system has made her a leading player in Egypt in food distribution, while creating a more sustainable ecosystem and transforming the lives of producers, businesses and consumers. Farah is now setting her sights on the whole Middle East and Northern Africa region, hoping to change the way fresh goods are sourced, moved and sold for the better.

“Our niche is the ability to use data and technology to streamline the value chain, empowering producers by increasing their income and providing lower costs to businesses while reducing food loss.” – Farah Emara