Frank Thoya, founder of Samaki Biscuits (left) and Ngumbao Kazungu, pastry chef (right), preparing ingredients for making fish cookies. Photo: Velma Pamela, bird story agency
By Velma Pamela, bird story agency
Things looked bad for Frank Thoya when the event planner lost his income and became a shark meat seller. But that led to an ‘aha’ moment that has since become a win-win for him and his community.
A delicious smell of baking fills the air, making its way down the street in a semi-industrial area of Kilifi County on the Kenyan coast. Frank Thoya is busy baking his fish cookies.
“I wanted to create something useful, affordable, and healthy,” Thoya says, sitting in his small factory, which is the centre of his efforts to make nutritional foods available to everyone.
Thoya’s efforts began after the COVID-19 outbreak flipped his entire world. Before 2020, Thoya worked as an event planner, focusing on birthday parties, weddings, and other functions. However, his once-thriving business came to a halt as social gatherings were prohibited due to the nationwide lockdown.
In an attempt to adjust, Thoya started selling dried shark meat. He thought it was a sensible decision that would help people stockpile food during lockdowns because shark meat has a long shelf life.
However, the business soon encountered difficulties. When the supply of shark meat dried up due to over-fishing, Thoya had to abandon the business. There was also the issue of the meat’s overwhelming stench.
“I remember walking home one day, and some ladies joked that I smelled of shark. It was really tough,” he says with a laugh.
However, a door then opened. While looking for a sustainable business idea, Thoya came across Kilifi County’s malnutrition data. According to the data, pregnant women and children under five in the region were experiencing significant nutritional deficits.
This information was a revelation. Thoya began looking at ways to combat malnutrition with accessible resources in his area. He investigated the health advantages of fruit and cassava. Then he remembered his experiences with fish and began speaking with specialists and nutritionists. He began experimenting with a baked concoction of all three ingredients. He settled on a cookie solution – something that would be palatable to children as well as adults.
After months of trial and error, Samaki Biscuits was born – a straightforward, reasonably priced snack made to offer the most nutrients with the fewest ingredients.
“These biscuits are high in essential vitamins, omega-3 fatty acids, and protein. Cassava gives you energy, fish aids with brain growth, and fruits give you natural sweetness and essential minerals. It’s a well-rounded solution with each bite,” Thoya notes.
A local pastry chef came across Thoya’s effort and was then inspired to join the venture. Recognising Samaki Biscuits’ potential, Ngumbao Kazungu decided to join the cause, offering his culinary experience to help refine and improve the production of these nutrient-dense cookies.
Fresh fish is cleaned, dried, and pounded into a thin powder. The fish powder is combined with cassava flour, a major crop in Kilifi County.
To add taste and nutrients, fruits like pineapples, mangoes, and bananas are either dried and processed into powder or mixed into a puree.
“We combine everything – fish, cassava, and fruits – in precise amounts. A little water and butter hold it all together, and sometimes we add icing sugar for sweetness,” Kazungu says.
Fish cookies on display at Frank Thoya’s office. Photo: Velma Pamela, bird story agency
After that, the mixture is formed into cookies and cooked for 45 minutes to an hour at a regulated temperature. This gives the baked result a crunch while preserving the nutrition. To further preserve their lifespan and freshness, they are placed in airtight packing after cooling, ready to be sold over the counter.
Pwani University, located in Kilifi County, tested the biscuits in its lab and found them to be a workable solution to a challenging problem, according to Professor Jofrey Kashindi, a researcher in the university’s Research and Extension Division.
“This project integrates all the key value chains of this county – fruits, fish, and cassava. We hope to carry out additional research to find additional benefits these cookies might offer beyond what we already know,” Kashindi says.
Beyond better health, the community has also benefited from the introduction of Samaki Biscuits in other ways. Thoya purchases fruits and cassava from nearby farmers, promoting sustainable livelihoods for small-scale farmers in Kilifi.
Additionally, local fishermen have another reliable market for their catch, increasing their revenue and reducing waste.
“It’s a win-win situation. In addition to addressing nutritional issues, we are building the local economy,” Thoya explains.
Thoya continues to encounter difficulties despite Samaki Biscuits’ popularity. Funding is a major obstacle that restricts the scope of production and distribution.
While Samaki Biscuits remains a cottage industry for now, Thoya has bigger dreams. He intends to increase production, form alliances with nearby educational institutions and medical facilities, and broaden distribution outside of Kilifi County.
“This is my mission, not just my work,” he said. “I want to demonstrate that major problems may be solved without the need for large machinery or opulent factories.”
/bird story agency
