Nana Owusu-Achau may have stayed on Wall Avenue, the place he bought a dream job after graduating from Calvin Faculty in Michigan with twin levels in engineering and Enterprise and Info Programs. However he had totally different plans.

Born and raised in Ghana, Nana was pushed by a ardour to contribute to his homeland, he returned to Ghana, turning down the attract of a high-powered profession within the U.S. for one thing extra significant.

“After I graduated, I had an excellent provide,” Owusu-Achau remembers. “However I felt a powerful need to come back again residence and use what I had discovered to create one thing that may profit the folks of Ghana.”

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He first entered the true property enterprise, becoming a member of his father’s firm earlier than establishing his personal property agency. Success got here rapidly, however his coronary heart was all the time in agriculture—a ardour that led him to launch farming ventures targeted on cattle and maize. Sadly, each ventures failed in 2017.

Fairly than settle for defeat, Nana noticed these failures as stepping stones. Throughout a visit to a rural city in Ghana, he encountered a turning level that may redefine his entrepreneurial journey. A neighborhood chef supplied him a style of rice grown by a small farmer within the area, and he was instantly struck by its high quality.

“The rice was distinctive,” he says. “I realised there was a chance right here—high quality rice may very well be produced regionally, nevertheless it wasn’t being completed at scale.”

Recognising the hole out there, he acted swiftly. Nana Owusu-Achau supplied financing, seeds, and coaching to 2 native farmers to domesticate high-quality rice. After the primary harvest, he used a easy but efficient technique to promote the rice: he promoted it on WhatsApp.

“I mentioned on my WhatsApp standing that I’m promoting good high quality, regionally made rice,” Nana remembers with a smile. “Inside about two hours, I bought all the baggage.”

The moment demand was an indication of issues to come back. Inspired by this early success, Nana Owusu-Achau expanded his operations. He introduced on extra employees, acquired 10,000 acres of land, and invested closely in packaging to place his rice model as a premium product.

“We’re spending a bit extra on manufacturing and producing engaging packaging,” he explains. “It’s widespread for folks to suppose that native produce isn’t of excellent high quality or that it’s not packaged correctly. We wish Ghanaians to know that it’s doable to provide on the similar stage of excellence as imported manufacturers—and even higher.”

At this time, his firm, Agro Kings, produces Nana’s Rice, one of many fastest-growing rice manufacturers on this planet. Nana’s Rice is out there in over 200 comfort shops in Accra, Ghana, and has expanded into worldwide markets together with the U.S., U.Okay., Belgium, and Germany.

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Nana Owusu-Achau has largely surmounted the preliminary wrestle of convincing retailers to inventory the model, which is priced greater than different native merchandise. However he stays assured.

“There’s all the time a marketplace for high quality,” he says. “It might take time, however we’re aiming for the larger supermarkets, each right here and internationally.”

In 2023, Agro Kings, which produces Nana’s rice model and different agricultural merchandise, bought over $1 million value of rice.