By the World Bank’s estimate, Tanzania is the 162nd best country when it comes to starting a business. When Hillary and I fully committed to starting a business in February of this year, we expected to complete our paperwork and immigration documents within three months. Now in December…

Tanzania’s smallholder farmers know how to survive. Oxen pull plows through dark and rich volcanic soils. Seeds are scattered by hand and weeds are removed by long-handled hoes. Chemical fertilizer is used sparingly and manure is scattered liberally. Fungicides and pesticides are sprayed from backpacks by young men in t-shirts and sandals….

The metal shutter-door screams everytime we slide it up. Inside the one-room office, stacks of financials and research trial reports sit alongside the tea service and our nascent seed bank. The interns settle themselves onto their high chairs and compare notes from their recent trips around Central Tanzania. Hillary analyzes receipts and types into her computer….

Smallholder farmers are the backbone of Tanzanian food production, producing 69% of all food consumed in the country. They manage this without the access to financing, irrigation, reliable weather predictions, mechanization, technical education, quality inputs, and market information that their Western counterparts …

Heshima is a Swahili word meaning Respect, but also often used as ‘Dignified’.

First came an idea, some research and a tour of Tanzania to see if this idea had any real legs. In the midst of our tour we began to deliberate what we’d name this business …