Kuza Leadership Academy: youth innovation

At just 26, Ivy Apetsi, a proud Youth Agripreneur from Kakamega County, turned a simple idea into a thriving, climate-friendly business. She founded Kwa Mushroom Farm, starting with only 30 kg of oyster mushrooms a month. Today, she sells fresh and dried mushrooms and is testing new products — even a mushroom-based health drink — to reach more buyers.

Ivy champions climate-smart production. Mushrooms grow indoors on farm waste like maize stalks and sawdust, which means:

🪴 No new land clearing or chemical fertilisers, protecting soil and forests.

🌱 Recycling crop residues cuts methane emissions from decomposing waste.

🫧 Mushrooms use very little water, helping farmers adapt to erratic rainfall.

Ivy trains other young people and women in low-cost, resource-saving methods, teaching them how to grow, dry, and package mushrooms while reducing waste and energy use. She organises producers into a network to negotiate better prices and plans to launch a mushroom aggregation centre and a “mushroom school” to scale these climate-friendly practices.

Through the Kuza Agripreneurship program, Ivy gained mentorship, business planning skills, and market connections that helped her grow from a small start-up to a leader in green, youth-led entrepreneurship.

Her story shows how youth and women can turn farm waste into nutritious food, steady incomes, and climate solutions for their communities.

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Read the original post on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/posts/kuzaone_kuzabiashara-kuzaleadershipacademy-youthinnovation-activity-7379473896711995392-6FYi