Every trip to the market feels like a robbery these days. You walk in with hope and leave with half your shopping list because prices have shot up again. When food prices rise, it is not solely drought or global events to blame; our broken supply chains are choking the system. But what if Kenya’s tech innovators hold the key to reducing costs and stabilising your dinner plate?

We often blame droughts and other factors for rising food prices, and while these factors exacerbate the situation, our system is causing the most harm. The food supply chain in Kenya is failing, which is why your ugali keeps getting more expensive.

Let’s face it. Farmers are working hard, producing food as they always have. Yet, nearly half of it never makes it to your plate. It gets lost along the way. Why not? Because between the farm and your dinner table, there are middlemen. Each one adds their cut, pushing prices higher. Bad roads slow things down, making transport expensive. Poor storage means tons of food rot in warehouses while shops in the city charge you more.

Consider this: a farmer in Kitale sells a bag of maize for Sh2,500. By the time it reaches the shelves in Nairobi as unga, the price has more than doubled. Why does this happen? The system is clogged with excessive costs, inefficiencies, and outright exploitation.

As a result, ordinary Kenyans are suffering. Many are skipping meals, and families are eating less. The cost of food has become a national crisis. This issue has a solution. Simple, innovative, effective changes can have a significant impact, providing an alternative to the complex, high-tech solutions often reserved for the elite.

Farmers need better access to markets. Instead of relying on middlemen, they should be able to sell directly to shops or consumers. Simple mobile platforms could connect them to buyers, eliminating unnecessary costs and lowering prices. According to the World Bank, reducing intermediary costs could decrease food prices by up to 10 percent benefiting farmers and consumers.

Food waste is on the rise. Currently, tons of food spoil because farmers lack proper handling and storage. Counties could establish small, solar-powered cold rooms or silos in rural areas to preserve food. Less waste translates to more affordable food in the market.

Farmers coming together can handle transportation pain. Instead of each farmer hiring individual trucks, farmers in the same area could collaborate and use shared transportation services similar to carpooling, but for food. This would reduce fuel costs and lower prices.

Mobile applications that monitor road conditions can help drivers avoid costly delays. The Kenya Transporters Association estimates that transportation inefficiencies increase food costs by 20 percent.

The government has a role to play in this process. Rather than providing temporary subsidies, it should invest in the required infrastructure to support these solutions.

We can bring back affordable ugali to every Kenyan home. And when that happens, we will feel the relief not just in our pockets, but in our hearts.

There writer is an Innovations Evangelist and a PhD candidate; machariamuhoho@gmail.com