Innovation, Colour, and Climate Hope: My Week at the Nairobi International Trade Fair

A Vibrant Showcase of Kenya’s Resilience

By Moraa Nyangorora

Walking into the Nairobi International Trade Fair 2025, the air was alive with energy, filled with crowds and school teams from across Kenya, enjoying the tours as others danced to the live music reverberating the air — the kind only Kenya’s agricultural show can create.

The fair’s theme, “Promoting Climate-Smart Agriculture and Trade for Sustainable Growth,” echoed through every display.

Vibrant flower beds at the Nairobi Trade Fair – a bloom of climate resilience.

From the colourful flower gardens bursting with marigolds and dahlias to neatly packaged grains, honey, yoghurt, and dried fruits, the fairground felt like a celebration of innovation rooted in soil and sun.

It was a reminder that agriculture here is not just about farming — it’s about identity, ingenuity, and survival in a warming world.

Where Innovation Meets Impact

Tucked between rows of exhibitors showcasing everything from tractors to irrigation systems, one booth pulled me in — Savanna Circuit Technologies,

A Kenyan start-up redefining how milk is cooled and transported in rural communities.

“We call it the Solar Thrive Solution Suite, it helps dairy farmers cool milk right at the source using solar energy — no diesel, no grid electricity, just the sun.”

The cooled milk is carried in lightweight stainless-steel cans, carefully balanced on electric motorcycles and solar-charged tuk-tuks — a simple yet brilliant logistics model for Kenya’s rural roads.

“We’ve seen up to a 40% reduction in milk losses in pilot areas,” the Savanna Circuit team explained. “Farmers say they no longer have to rush to deliver milk before it spoils — they can plan their days better.”

Beyond the Innovation

The trade fair was more than a showcase of technologies; it was a celebration of possibility.

From young entrepreneurs pitching agri-tech ideas to farmers proudly displaying hybrid crops, the optimism was infectious.

And as the sun dipped behind the fairgrounds, casting golden light over the flower beds, it was clear — Kenya’s future in agriculture is bright, innovative, and beautifully homegrown.

Restoring Soil: How technology Is Helping Kenyan Farmers Re-green Land

By Moraa Nyangorora

A locally driven innovation is changing the farming landscape in arid and semi arid areas prone to soil degradation. The mobile app developed by Kenyan environmental technologists and community groups is helping farmers map degraded land, track seedlings survival and connect with restoration partners.

This comes against a backdrop of a Heinrich Boll Foundation report that indicates only 20 pc of Kenya's crop land is suitable for food production under the current soil health conditions.

Kenya loses 26 tons per hectare of soil per year through soil erosion according to the report .

"Soil is the foundation of life, yet it is one of the most overlooked and undervalued resources. Its health influences the food we eat,the water we drink and the air we breathe"

Joachim Paul-Director Henirich Boll Foundation

The regreening application like the Kijani app is a response to the growing problem of soil degradation, which is directly linked to shrinking arable land and food security.

Launched in Kenya in October 2025 small scale farmers are empowered on how to re-green their land.

Our vision is to make re-greening accessible to everyone. The Kijani App provides digital training and farmer to farmer learning, empowering farmers to take action".

Justdiggit Communication team

A Green Idea For Africa

This application is designed to offer information and digital courses on proven methods to improve yields, soil health and livelihood resilience.

It made its debut in Tanzania where it achieved over 20,000 downloads with active user percentages and curricula on re-greening techniques.

"The Kijani App is good, as I have learned how to make compost manure and prevent soil erosion on my farm. My ambition is to be a model farmer by re-greening ,conserving the environment and protecting natural vegetation."

Jeremiah Jackson-Farmer Singida Tanzania

This Application was among the several climate smart initiatives show cased at the recent Trade Fair held at Nairobi Jamhuri Showground early October 2025.

The Kenya roll out is leveraging the same tool set applied in Tanzania and is working with partners like PELUM Kenya to access agro ecology networks according to Justdiggit representatives at the Trade Fair.

School teams among those who visited the 2025 Nairobi International Trade Fair

Technology access and digital literacy is an emerging challenge in the use of such Applications especially in areas where smallholder farmers may lack smart phones, data connectivity or are not tech savvy.

Digital training may also not translate into action, implementing may require inputs, labor, local context like soil type, rainfall access to seedlings which may vary from region to region.

“Our members are eager to use digital tools like Kijani to expand climate-smart agriculture. It helps bridge generational gaps — younger farmers learn easily through mobile platforms, while older farmers benefit from community-based demonstrations.”— PHYLLIS NDIINU (Interview

Why It Matters

Over 80% of Kenya’s rural population depends on agriculture for income and food security. Yet, Kenyas estimated Land Degradation Index (LDI) suggests approximately 30-35 % land area is degraded as of 2025.

The re-greening Apps like the Kijani one, attempts to offer a low-cost, scalable solution — turning a farmer’s mobile phone into a classroom for soil health, climate resilience, and sustainable farming.

“It’s like having a farming coach in my pocket. The lessons are short, simple, and in Kiswahili — I learn even while feeding my goats.”

Farmer, Kiambu County (Interview, 2025)

Kenya's Research Institute KALRO were among exhibitors at the Nairobi Trade Fair

Solar Cooling Keeping Dairy Sector Alive In Rural Kenya

“Our solar cooling system isn’t just about temperature; it’s about trust. Farmers can finally deliver milk knowing it will reach the market fresh.”

— Savanna Circuit Technical Lead

Savanna Circuit booth at ASK Trade Fair

When I stopped by the Savanna Circuit Technologies stand at the ASK Trade Fair in Nairobi, I wasn’t expecting to find a climate solution disguised as a milk cooler.

One of their sales team members walked me through the innovation — a sleek, solar-powered cooling system mounted on a trolley, small enough to fit on an electric motorcycle or tuk-tuk.

That conversation turned into a quiet moment of revelation: this is how clean energy can change lives — one can of milk at a time.

Across rural Kenya, evening milk collections face a tough reality. Once the sun sets and the power goes out, milk spoils fast.

In fact, Kenya loses nearly 290 million litres of milk each year before it even reaches collection centres — mostly due to heat and lack of cooling.

Farmers often wake up to sour milk they can’t sell. Processors reject deliveries. Families lose income. Consumers lose trust. It’s not just an agricultural issue — it’s a health and climate story too.

The Innovation: Solar Cooling that Moves with the Milk

Solar cooler mounted on electric motorbike or tuk-tuk

Solar-powered pre-chillers that keep milk cold from farm to collection.

Cooling-as-a-Service (CaaS) — farmers don’t buy expensive hardware; they access cooling as a pay-per-use model.

Easy transport — specially designed milk cans fit neatly on electric motorcycles or tuk-tuks, staying balanced and cool even on rough rural roads.

“We designed the system so that milk can travel safely — even over bumpy roads — without losing its freshness,” a Savanna Circuit sales representative told me at the fair.

Savanna Circuit now serves over 22,000 smallholder farmers in at least 10 dairy zones across Kenya, including:

Nakuru, Narok, Kisii, Bungoma, Kakamega, Busia, Migori, Murang’a, Nyamira, Nyeri, Isiolo, Meru, and Taita Taveta.

These are areas where electricity is unreliable but dairy is livelihood.

In Isiolo and West Pokot, for instance, mobile solar coolers are helping pastoralist families keep milk fresh despite high temperatures and long travel distances.

Food Safety & Health

The benefits of this cooling system are immense, on the health side milk stays below 4°C, slowing bacterial growth and reducing risk of contamination. The result, a healthier, safer drink for families and children.

To the farmer this means less spoilage, more litres sold and a higher household income.

To the environment, the Solar energy replaces diesel generators, cutting emissions and energy costs.

This increases efficiency as the milk is easy to transport using electric tuk-tuks or e-bikes extending cooling to the last mile.

“This is what climate-smart agriculture looks like — simple, renewable, practical,”

Kenya’s government has rolled out 230 bulk milk coolers across 41 counties, increasing cooling capacity by nearly half a million litres daily.

The goal? To reduce national milk losses, stabilise prices, and give farmers confidence in the value chain.

This aligns perfectly with the private-sector innovation of solar systems like Savanna Circuit’s — creating a green bridge between policy, technology, and livelihoods.

Of course, scaling innovation is never smooth. Some communities still face limited access to financing, spare parts, or technicians.

Rural roads remain poor. And even with pay-as-you-go models, affordability can be a hurdle.

But where these systems take root, the impact is undeniable.

Clean energy is not just keeping milk cool — it’s keeping families resilient, children healthier, and carbon footprints smaller.

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Farmer holding chilled milk can next to solar cooler

When I left the ASK Trade Fair that afternoon, the hum of the solar motor still echoed in my mind.

It wasn’t just about technology — it was about possibility.

If renewable energy can keep milk fresh in Kenya’s villages, it can just as easily keep hope alive for a climate-smart future.

Because in the story of Kenya’s dairy farmers, every cooled litre of milk is a victory — for health, for livelihoods, and for the planet.