Evans Killi
Evans Killi is a Kenyan industrial entrepreneur who has transformed a modest start-up into one of the Rift Valley’s busiest grain processors. Raised in Uasin Gishu County, he watched his father struggle to sell maize at volatile market prices and resolved to build a fairer supply chain. Armed with a degree in Mechanical and Plant Engineering from Moi University and internships at two Eldoret flour mills, he borrowed KSh 3 million in 2013 to purchase a single hammer mill, a small generator, and a used sifter.
Today his company, Buffalo Millers Ltd, runs a fully automated plant on the outskirts of Eldoret, turning out 100 tonnes of fortified Mfalme maize flour every 24 hours and employing more than 100 people. Killi contracts 7,000 smallholder farmers, guaranteeing prompt digital payments and providing subsidised drying and storage to curb post-harvest losses. A by-product pelleting line converts bran into livestock feed, lifting overall grain-use efficiency to 96 percent.
Committed to continuous innovation, he is piloting solar-powered grain driers and an Internet-of-Things sensor network that tracks silo temperature and humidity in real time. Killi sits on the Cereal Millers Association’s fortification task force and mentors agri-preneurs through the Eldoret Innovation Hub, proving that local engineering know-how and ethical sourcing can power Kenya’s food-security ambitions.