AgDevCo backs Victory Farms expansion with US$15M to scale East African aquaculture

KENYA – Agri‑sector investor AgDevCo has committed a US $15 million follow-on investment to Victory Farms Group, supporting the company’s expansion in Kenya and Rwanda and helping it scale production over the next three years, aiming to reach 30,000 tonnes of annual fish output by 2029.

Victory Farms, one of East Africa’s most prominent aquaculture businesses, plans to use the capital to increase production capacity, strengthen distribution networks and improve value chain integration across key markets.

“Our aim is to build a leading aquaculture business that supplies nutritious protein at scale, while creating opportunities for the traders and communities that depend on our value chain,” said Joseph Rehmann, founder and CEO of Victory Farms Group.

He added that the investment will help meet rising regional demand for affordable, high‑quality fish.

This is AgDevCo’s second investment in Victory Farms.

In 2021, the investor provided an initial US $4 million financing package to improve production efficiency and operational scale.

That early support enabled the company to upgrade hatchery and grow‑out systems, adopt more reliable pond and feed technologies, and strengthen cold chain and distribution infrastructure.

This ultimately boosted annual output significantly from earlier levels of a few thousand tonnes.

Victory Farms used the capital to expand its fry and fingerling production capacity, reducing dependency on imports and laying the foundation for commercial growth.

According to AgDevCo, the 2021 investment helped optimise feed management, reduce mortality rates and professionalise farm operations, achieving better yields and improved cost structures.

These improvements, combined with stronger sales and logistics, positioned the company for faster scaling, a trajectory that the new funding is expected to accelerate.

Aquaculture market outlook in East Africa

The aquaculture sector in Kenya and the wider East African region remains undersized relative to demand.

Kenya’s current fish production is heavily weighted toward capture fisheries, with aquaculture contributing a smaller share.

Latest figures indicate that Kenya produced around 168,000 tonnes of fish in 2024, of which aquaculture accounted for only a fraction, far below national consumption needs.

The country experiences a persistent fish deficit of approximately 450,000 tonnes annually, driven by population growth and rising protein demand.

This gap has prompted stakeholders to promote aquaculture as a sustainable source of animal protein.

The government, development partners and private investors have highlighted the sector’s potential to improve food security, generate employment and reduce pressure on wild fish stocks.

Victory Farms’ production target of 30,000 tonnes by 2029 represents a meaningful step toward closing part of that gap, particularly in supplying tilapia and other popular species to domestic and regional markets.

AgDevCo’s investment also reflects broader confidence in East Africa’s aquaculture potential.

Growth projections point to double‑digit expansion in aquaculture production over the next decade, as producers adopt improved genetics, feed formulations, disease management and better farm practices.

Yet challenges remain, including limited access to quality feed, high input costs, fragmented value chains and inadequate cold chain infrastructure, constraints that investors and industry players are working to address.

Rehmann noted that increased production must be matched by stronger market linkages and distribution, saying the investment would help build out logistics capacity and ensure consistent supply to urban and peri‑urban consumers.

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