Unlocking working capital innovation: venture clienting between Grainpulse and Agrista

Through its venture clienting service RootCamp, RootCamps identifies tailored startup solutions to address corporate challenges, creating numerous success stories by connecting innovative startups with established companies.

One such project is the 2021 partnership between Grainpulse and Agrista, a startup from RootCamp Batch #2. The two companies partnered up to create a structured working capital financing at Granipulse.

The Problem

As a trading company, Grainpulse financed 75% of its fertilizer sales through credit while reserving 7.5% for potential bad debt, and it paid farmers in cash for harvested produce, holding the stock for up to six months before selling to offtakers - an approach that heavily relied on working capital, strained its balance sheet, and limited business growth.

The Solution

Through the financial infrastructure developed by Agrista, Grainpulse gained accurate insights into capital returns to support strategic decision-making, while safeguarding advance credit against production risks ensured more reliable financial outcomes and strengthened long-term shareholder value.

Project Deliverables

The project aimed to analyse the production risks of  Grainpulse and to assess the feasibility ofof using off-balance sheet financing. Another deliverable of the partnership was to configure a financial administration system for Granipulse.

About Agrista

Agrista is a South African Startup founded in 2021 in Cape Town. It provides finance infrastructure to scale sustainable food & fibre supply chains. It provides a platform that enables buyers to set up structured supply chains and distribute working capital directly to farmers to scale their operations. Funding can be linked to management practices of farmers and tied to specific locations to grow specific food regions. We call it site-specific finance.

About Granipulse

Grainpulse is an integrated agribusiness company based in Uganda that produces fertilizer and trades agricultural products. Founded in 2002 with the mission of transforming the lives of Ugandan farmers, the company combines the production of high-quality, crop-specific fertilizer blends with market access through the offtake of crops such as coffee, grains, and pulses. Grainpulse also provides agronomy and advisory services, offering training on good agricultural practices and working closely with farmers to create sustainable value across the agricultural sector.

Looking to accelerate innovation within your organization?

With RootCamp’s venture clienting model, corporations can systematically assess and implement startup solutions in a structured, low-risk way and without taking equity. Designed for organizations with clearly defined business challenges, RootCamp enables hands-on pilot projects that turn innovative ideas into real-world impact.