Who We Are
Empowering Pan-African Food Businesses & Feeding Your Innovation.
We identify gaps in Africa's food landscape through research and leverage on our community to generate solutions and support the innovations birthed out of this cycle.
In 2023, we opened Ghana's first shared kitchen space and have since evolved based on community feedback - leading to the development of what also became the first dedicated co-working space for food entrepreneurs in the country.
About Our
Founder
Dr. Wanida Lewis is a food scientist and passionate advocate for women in agriculture. As the Founder and CEO of Crescendo Foods, she's created West Africa's first shared kitchen space, empowering food entrepreneurs to thrive. With a PhD in Food Science and experience as a Science and Technology Policy Fellow, she bridges science and policy to create lasting change. Dr. Lewis is a recognized leader, receiving numerous awards, and is the first Black woman with an endowment in Food Science at North Carolina State University. Her vision is to build a sustainable food system that empowers women and benefits all.
Problem Statement
In Accra, upscale supermarkets overflow with imports, yet a quarter of residents cannot count on their next nutritious meal. Across Ghana, over 1 million people face acute food insecurity, worsened by 59% food inflation in 2023 and reliance on rain-fed agriculture. Women and small food entrepreneurs, who form the backbone of local food systems, struggle to scale because they lack capital, safe kitchens, and market access. These structural barriers, rooted in economic precarity and climate stress, keep nutritious food scarce and expensive despite Ghana’s agricultural abundance.