Diana’s story: growing a healthier world

Diana Muthee is the Founder and CEO of Karmi Valley in Juja, Kenya. Her business uses sustainable agricultural practices to grow health-boosting herbs, which are sold within Kenya and abroad. Our Road to Growth programme supported her to build her network, improve her access to new markets, and strengthen her financial knowledge so that she can continue making a positive impact on the world.  

“I was born an entrepreneur because my dad was a businessman. That’s all I ever knew him to be, so I think I had that entrepreneurial influence from a young age. Even when I went to university and studied something very different from business, I still knew that I’d be an entrepreneur. 

At first I went into a very different kind of business, working in the ICT sector. Unfortunately, in 2014, my brother was unwell due to an autoimmune illness. There isn’t really a medicine that cures it, so my family started researching other ways to improve his health, and found that some foods were loaded with healing power. A few years later, my friend introduced me to growing herbs and all the natural health benefits they offer. I was hooked! 

I ended up starting my herb farm, Karmi Valley, with my family in 2021. We grow and export fresh herbs, including basil, rosemary, thyme, tarragon, oregano, marjoram, lovage, and lemongrass. Most of the herbs we grow have antioxidant, digestive, anti-inflammatory, and memory boosting properties. Honestly, I think if people knew more about how to use herbs to improve their health, we wouldn’t need pharmacies. That’s why I wanted to grow them. I wanted to grow all these health benefits and sell them to the world. At the same time, I wanted my family to benefit from them. 

When we set out to run our family farm, we wanted to do it right. This means being intentional about taking care of the earth, as well as our community. We’ve adopted ethical and sustainable production practices like water efficiency, integrated pest management, and tree planting for biodiversity. We also hire local women and pay them fairly for their labour.  

In terms of water efficiency, we pump our water from a nearby river. We’re careful to pump only what we need and leave the rest for other people in the community. Drip line irrigation has also been implemented, as opposed to overhead irrigation, because it’s less wasteful. The water that doesn’t get used, gets shared with others. 

We use the mildest chemical possible for pest management and we use only when we have to. Otherwise, we use cultural methods to take care of our crops. That means observing high hygiene standards to keep disease and pests away and using organic products to treat them, when possible.  

The farmland we use belongs to my husband’s family, but no one really used it. I noticed it had very few trees, which meant less tree cover for both the plants and our staff. It’s important to have trees around to act as a wind breaker and reduce crop loss during inclement weather. Through last year alone, we planted over 100 trees on the property. We plan to continue doing this and start propagating tree seedlings to share with the community. 

The village we work in is mostly known for stone quarrying, an industry that mainly employs men. I wanted to give employment opportunities to local women, so that they also have a way of supporting themselves. We have twenty-four women working for us now, and they are so grateful to have money of their own.  For many of them, this means being able to better provide for their families.  

A key challenge for women entrepreneurs like me is that you have multiple roles to play. I’m a business owner, but I’m also a mother. I have teenage children to care for and that’s like having another full-time job on top of my business. I want to feel fulfilled in all areas of my life, both at home and at work, but that means taking on a heavy workload and often struggling to juggle both. This is the case for many women, and I find that we often don’t have time for business networking, which is crucial for running a successful business. The more you grow your networks, the more knowledge you can exchange, and the more markets you gain access to. 

Accessing new markets is key for business growth, but marketing your business to another country, even one that’s nearby, takes a lot of work. Many business owners don’t know where to begin. It’s funny though, because I find it goes both ways. There are often people in other parts of the world who are looking for your product, but they don’t have a way of reaching you. It’s important for entrepreneurs to have knowledge, pathways, and links so that they can bring their products to the people who need them, regardless of location.  

I was really pleased to see that the Cherie Blair Foundation for Women was launching its Road to Markets programme, because supporting women’s access to markets is crucial. It sounds like a great way to build on the opportunities that come from existing programmes, like Road to Growth, which I was pleased to participate in last year. 

Road to Growth provided an opportunity for women entrepreneurs to meet each other and collaborate. One of the main gains from the programme was getting to engage with other women and support each other’s businesses. At the time, I was looking for a bookkeeper, and one of the other women in the programme ran an accounting business. I started using her services, which has been very helpful. 

The other key benefit of the programme for me was the finance management training that we got. We were trained to really dive deep on our financial records and not just know our numbers, but also understand how those numbers impact our businesses. It highlighted the areas where we could improve. 

The programme’s curriculum was all-encompassing. It touched on all areas of business, from marketing to finance to building strategies. It was like a mini-MBA. 

Sustainable practices should be embedded in all businesses around the world, regardless of what type of business it is. The way I see it, we don’t have a choice. We need to keep our planet healthy in order to survive. It’s a no-brainer. The only case for not adopting sustainable practices is if you want quick money for today and nothing for tomorrow. I think most entrepreneurs can agree that it’s better to make choices today that give you food and financial security in the future.  

The responsibility can’t only fall to businesses though. We all must do our part. If you have a house, plant a tree outside your house. If you have plastic waste, be responsible in how you dispose of it.  

Governments and policy makers need to step up and protect the planet too. Many high-income countries have laws that keep agricultural businesses from using harsh chemicals that harm the environment. However, those same countries allow businesses to produce harmful products that are sold to low-income countries where those laws aren’t in place. That has to be stopped.  

I have big plans for the next few years of our business. I aim to double  production and strengthen our financial position. Additionally, I want to continue making a positive impact on our community and the world, and envision our company becoming a role model for sustainability in business.”