Kwithu Kitchen (KK) – founded in 2013 – is the first women-owned food processing cooperative in northern Malawi. KK grew out of the Kwithu Women’s Group, a vibrant community-based organization located in Mzuzu, Malawi. The 20 founders of Kwithu Women’s Group preserved tomatoes in order to feed more vulnerable children in their feeding program. With help from Maloto, a US-based non-profit, these women also saw a business opportunity to process tomatoes on a much larger scale. The business provided a path to financially support them and local farmers. A portion of sales revenue is donated to the social programs run by the Kwithu Women’s Group.
KK expanded its product line in April 2020, and began processing high-quality Malawian honey. Kwithu Kitchen immediately became the largest honey supplier in the country! Kwithu Kitchen’s products are found in every major supermarket chain in the country (Shoprite, Sana and Chipiku Plus), in major hotel chains like the Sunbird Hotels, and in many restaurants and institutions.
Kwithu Women’s Group – The Kwithu Women’s Group was founded in 2004 by 20 dynamic and inspiring women, who wanted to give back to their community. They are an impactful community-based organization that works alongside their community’s most vulnerable groups to improve their lives in tangible ways. Kwithu uses a holistic approach to implement a range of programs, including: educational and scholarship funding, women and youth empowerment, HIV/AIDS support, community outreach and a feeding program. The community members take the lead in identifying their problems, and propose appropriate actions for change.
The founding members established Kwithu Kitchen as a separate entity to provide an opportunity for these women to become more economically self-sufficient. Kwithu Kitchen donates some of their sales revenue to support the Kwithu Women’s Group’s important programs.
Maloto – Maloto is a US-based non-profit organization. Maloto was founded by Malawian native and proud citizen, Dr. Anna Msowoya-Keys, along with several like-minded Malawians who were living in the United States. Maloto means ‘dreams’ in local language. Maloto has been raising seed funds for Kwithu Kitchen since its inception. Maloto also identifies technical resources such as consultants with expertise in food safety and quality, marketing and advertising, and financial management. Maloto has committed to continuing its support to Kwithu Kitchen for the long-term.
2011 – the Kwithu Women’s Group (see Our Story) learned how to preserve tomatoes with the help of Maloto’s board member Meredith Brokaw. The initial purpose was to preserve tomatoes to save costs and increase the number of children the Kwithu Women’s Group could feed at the Kwithu Community Center.
2013 – Kwithu Kitchen is formally incorporated as the northern region’s first women-owned food processing cooperative. KK’s first product was ‘Garden Fresh Tomatoes’, which was preserved whole tomatoes packaged in a beautiful 1kg glass jar.
2015 – Kwithu Kitchen receives funding from the Malawi Innovation Challenge Fund (MICF) for a three year project. KK builds a tomato processing facility and hires professional staff to manage the business under the women owner’s supervision and guidance. KK introduces Tomate Puree (in 2kg and 400g pouches) to its product line.
2018 – Kwithu Kitchen receives funding from the United States African Development Foundation. KK writes a new business plan, targeting entry into the honey sector as one of its highest priorities.
2020 – Kwithu Kitchen begins selling honey in April 2020, and quickly establishes itself as the largest Malawian honey processer and supplier in the country.
2022 – Kwithu Kitchen expands its product offerings to include tomato sauce (ketchup) and tomato jam. New product development includes dried mangoes, mango jam and hot chilli sauce.
To understand Kwithu Kitchen’s mission and goals, let share my vision for my beloved Malawi. Malawians possess the talent, ability and desire to make this a truly great country. I want Kwithu Kitchen to contribute to building a better Malawi.
Kwithu Kitchen, established in 2013, is the first women-owned food processing cooperative in northern Malawi. Since April 2020, we have become the country’s largest honey processor and supplier! We support more than 1,000 farmers and beekeepers (many of them women). We have a range of nutritious, high-quality and tasty tomato and honey products. Our products are found in every major supermarket chain and in most of the best hotels. With sales growing, we can see a pathway to profitability.
Kwithu Kitchen grew out of the Kwithu Women’s Group, a community-based organization (CBO) in the Luwinga Ward of Mzuzu. I founded Kwithu CBO in 2004 with 20 dynamic and inspiring women. The Kwithu CBO is a unique organization that works alongside their community’s most vulnerable groups to improve their lives with a broad range of social, economic, health and educational programs. Our goal is to donate a portion of our profits to support the Kwithu CBO’s programs.
Our sales growth provides a reliable market for many small-holder farmers and beekeepers and reliable employment for more than 30 full-time employees. We are proving that Malawians can process high-value and high-quality food products. Our continued growth and success will only increase our social and economic impact.
We welcome your support to help us realize a better tomorrow for Malawi. Help us get there!