Dr. Rachel Okeyo is the founder of Arbres Biotech in Kenya (Arbres is French for trees), an on-demand seedling production company that uses tissue culture technology to generate improved and affordable seed varieties for nurseries in Kenya.
Arbres Biotech was founded on January 10, 2018, out of an identified challenge by Dr. Rachel, in finding affordable quality seedlings in the marketplace to grow grapes in her backyard garden.
Her 20+ years career as a researcher in plant biotechnology has earned her organization the status of top quality, innovative and efficient seedling production systems and be one of the leading suppliers in East Africa.
With seedling quality being a paramount issue among local farmers, Arbres Biotech labs are located at the Biotechnology Unit in Kalro (Kenya Agricultural and Livestock Research Organisation) and Kitengela, Kajiado County, with the capacity to handle up to 20,000 seedlings at a time and further expansion plans underway.