Our story · Since 2017
It started with a pumpkin.
Zima Healthy Group is a Rwanda-based food and agro-processing company transforming Africa’s locally sourced seeds, nuts, fruits and other nutritious crops into premium, minimally processed foods, cold-pressed oils and functional ingredients for healthy living and global markets.
“There is value in what we already have.”
The story behind Zima
Growing up in Rwanda’s Southern Province, Marie Ange Mukagahima was surrounded by pumpkins. They were everywhere: growing in fields, around homes and in the communities she knew.
Yet despite their abundance and nutritional richness, pumpkins were often overlooked. Their seeds were thrown away, and the crop was rarely seen as something with greater possibilities. Marie Ange wondered why.
While studying at the University of Rwanda, that simple curiosity became a passion. She began researching pumpkins and experimenting with ways to turn them into something nutritious, useful and valuable. In 2017, with little more than an idea and determination, she made her first pumpkin bread.
It was a small beginning, but it opened a much bigger door. Her pumpkin-based innovation won the 2017 Digital Opportunity Trust Rwanda Youth Social Innovators Competition, giving life to what was then known as Zima Enterprise.
From one pumpkin to a bigger vision
Over the years, that belief grew beyond pumpkins. It became a vision to discover the possibilities hidden within Africa’s seeds, nuts, fruits and other agricultural resources, and to transform them into products people can enjoy, trust and take pride in.
Today, Zima works across seeds, nuts, cold-pressed oils, snacks and other value-added foods, sourcing from Rwanda and the wider region and creating products for consumers at home and beyond Africa.
The pumpkin remains where our story began. But it was never the destination. It was the first seed.
Our journey
From a student idea to a food company.
Marie Ange makes her first pumpkin bread in a local bakery’s oven. The idea wins the DOT Rwanda Youth Social Innovators Competition and Zima Enterprise is born.
Zima Healthy Group Ltd. is established, evolving the original venture into a more professional, structured food and agro-processing company.
Seeds, nuts, cold-pressed oils and snacks, reaching customers across Rwanda, East Africa and selected international markets.
Zima in numbers
Built one lesson, one product, one relationship at a time.
We did not start with everything we needed. We started with an idea, and built what came next.
The journey started with a student innovation built around pumpkin.
Zima Healthy Group Ltd. was established as a professional food and agro-processing company.
Building stronger links between agricultural production and value-added markets.
A growing team across production, quality, sales and operations.
Reaching customers and buyers across Rwanda, East Africa and selected international markets.
From the original pumpkin idea to a broader range of nutritious foods.
Recognised through entrepreneurship, agricultural innovation and regional exhibitions.
Developing food-safety, quality and traceability systems for demanding markets.
Why Zima exists
To turn what Africa grows into what the world can value.
Too often, nutritious local crops were consumed in their simplest form, wasted, or sold as low-value raw materials, while farmers had limited opportunities to benefit from the value created further along the supply chain.
Seeds and crops once thrown away become food and ingredients.
Processing in Rwanda keeps more of the value close to home.
Linking agricultural production with value-added markets.
Nutritious foods and ingredients people can enjoy and trust.
How we grew
What we could not buy, we learned to build.
Starting with an idea was one thing; turning it into a real product was another. Every challenge taught us something, from processing and packaging to quality, presentation and customer expectations.
Machinery
Suitable food-processing machinery was hard to find locally. We improvised, learned through experimentation and gradually found better ways of doing things.
Packaging
Finding packaging that protects the product, communicates quality and competes on the shelf was not easy. It became one of our biggest lessons.
Competition
Imported brands had more polished packaging and greater resources. Instead of seeing them only as competition, we chose to learn from them.
Our mission
Transforming Africa’s harvest into nourishment, value and opportunity.
Our vision
A world where Africa’s finest agricultural products are valued, trusted and enjoyed everywhere.
Our purpose
Nourishing people. Creating value. Growing Africa.
Our core values
What guides every product we make.
Rooted in Purpose
We believe business should create value beyond profit. We work to connect agriculture, nutrition, livelihoods and opportunity in ways that make a meaningful difference.
Quality Without Compromise
From the raw materials we source to the way we process, package and deliver our products, we pursue consistency, safety and excellence.
Curiosity & Innovation
Zima began with a question: what more can this crop become? We continue to question, experiment, learn and improve.
People & Partnerships
We value our farmers, employees, customers, suppliers and partners, and believe lasting success is built through trust, respect and shared value.
African Value, Global Standards
Proudly rooted in Africa, with standards not limited by geography: products that stand confidently in regional and international markets.
Responsible Growth
We grow in a way that respects people, resources and the environment, creating value today while thinking about what we leave for tomorrow.