Cowtribe

Cowtribe solves logistics and supply chain issues by leveraging the power of mobile technology to efficiently deliver veterinary and agro inputs to rural farmers across Africa. Cowtribe has cumulatively served nearly 50,000 farmers and delivered over 50 million doses of vaccines, successfully reducing livestock mortality from 30% to 11% in the communities they serve.

The Problem
Livestock is a crucial asset for Africans, with approximately 70% relying on it for food and income. However, due to supply chain inefficiencies, farmers lose roughly 25% of their livestock to preventable diseases. While vaccination can prevent up to 70% of these losses, less than 15% of smallholder farmers have access to vaccines.

Vaccine distribution in remote areas faces numerous challenges. Approximately 60% of farmers in sub-Saharan Africa live in regions with inadequate transportation infrastructure, making vaccine delivery slow and unreliable. High transportation costs, often constituting 40-50% of total distribution expenses, along with the need for multiple intermediaries and costly refrigeration units for cold chain management further complicate the supply chain.

These challenges result in an estimated annual income loss of $2 billion for affected farmers, many of whom struggle to feed their families. The animal health delivery system in rural Africa is critically under-resourced and under-invested. To support smallholder and last-mile farms, the animal health supply chain needs a transformation that leverages modern technology and sustainable business models.

The Solution
Cowtribe’s product is a smart supply chain and logistics platform that aggregates last-mile farmer demand for livestock products, delivers these products to farms across Ghana, and provides farmers with educational voice messages that help increase awareness about vaccines. The business model is simple and logical: Cowtribe, with a network of animal health providers, aggregates vaccine purchases in high volumes and delivers them to rural and underserved farms through the use of drones. Cowtribe efficiently distributes high-quality, affordable vaccines and offers quality customer service when needed. Through the sale of vaccines, Cowtribe generates revenue, and has adopted a penetration pricing strategy — a strategy where services are priced slightly lower in order to penetrate the market quickly and deeply — to attract buyers and win market share over time. Cowtribe maintains pricing consistency in each geographical area they serve, ensuring consistency in their product.

The primary objectives of Cowtribe’s growth strategy are to expand their provider network, achieve profitability to sustain their mission, and remain dedicated to increasing farmers’ access to high-quality animal vaccines. They plan to build out their sales, marketing, and operations to deepen demand in existing markets and extend their services to an additional 50,000 farmers. In 2024, Cowtribe expanded their services to Kenya and is currently in the process of expanding to Côte d’Ivoire.