Ruaha Milling Company Ltd (RMC) is a Tanzanian agribusiness based in Iringa, in the country's Southern Highlands. Established in 2015 as a grain aggregator, RMC opened its own processing plant in 2018 and now mills maize flour, paddy rice, and sunflower oil for urban consumers, retailers, schools, and institutions across the region. RMC has historically operated below capacity due to limited working capital and raw material shortages.

Through its partnership with IDH under the Growing Together Program, RMC is working to strengthen its sourcing model and grow more durably. The program is improving the company’s engagement with smallholder farmers supported by a more formalised network of village-based agents and farmer organisations.

For the smallholder farmers involved, the potential gains are significant. With improved access to inputs, training in good agricultural practices, and more reliable service delivery. Irrigated paddy farmers could see incomes rise by as much as 433%, and farmers growing both maize and sunflower by up to 367%, over five years. Achieving these outcomes will require addressing systemic challenges such as weak seed systems, inconsistent irrigation, and price volatility, through stronger contracting and financing mechanisms.

The analysis recommends that RMC prioritises strengthening its governance and internal systems, invests in digital farmer management tools, and formalises its network of agents and farmer organisations, while pursuing blended finance to fund expansion. By pairing this internal strengthening with a focused and better-supported group of smallholder suppliers, RMC has a credible path to raising both farmer incomes and its own processing capacity.