Most of us buy food without thinking much about where it came from. We pick up vegetables, eggs, bread, or meat, pay for them, take them home, and move on with our day. That means, somewhere along the way, food became something we buy rather than something we know.
Season 9's theme is Back to Basics, meaning exploring the systems, habits, and assumptions that shape how we live. In this Yespisode, Akumu and Claire decide to approach food differently. The point is not to argue for organic, against supermarkets or for everyone to become a farmer; it is to ask what changes when we get closer to the people, places and seasons behind what we eat.
This episode is brought to you by Farmers' Market Nairobi, and, fittingly, its founder, Dennis Andaye (@dennisandaye), joins the girls for the conversation. Dennis is the CEO of the Regional Coalition for Farmers Markets (RECOF).
His work building and supporting farmers' markets in Kenya has given him a different view of the connections between consumers, farmers, and the systems in between.
For the Yes Challenge, Akumu heads to one of the farmers' markets run by Dennis with one mission: cook a full meal using ingredients bought from farmers she'd actually met. No supermarket top-ups, apart from a few permitted essentials. What she expected to be a quick shopping trip became something surprisingly personal.
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Timestamps to Specific Segments:
(0:00) Intro
(1:36) When did we stop knowing where our food comes from?
(03:19) Meet Dennis Andaye: how a health crisis led him to farming & farmers' markets
(08:42) YES Challenge: What changed when Akumu bought food differently
(13:13) Why buying directly from farmers feels different
(26:40) Is farmers' market food actually more expensive?
(29:28) Why shoppers become loyal to particular farmers
(33:45) The stories behind the food we eat
(36:03) How to shop at a farmers' market: first-timers and introverts
(42:40) Making food relational again & conscious eating
(46:48) Dennis rates Akumu's experience with the YES challenge
(48:21) Can consumers change Kenya's food system?
(54:32) Key takeaways + do we need to give up supermarkets to eat locally?
(57:49) What Dennis has recently said YES to
(1:00:00) Outro
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Together, the Yes Girls and Dennis explore why food used to be far more relational than it is today, how consumer choices influence what farmers ultimately produce, why eating locally is not necessarily as expensive as we assume, and what shorter food supply chains could mean for cities like Nairobi. They also unpack seasonality, organic farming, convenience, choice, and the unexpected relationships that form when you know the person growing your food.
This episode is about eating closer. And maybe the future doesn't require choosing between convenience and connection at all. Maybe the more interesting question is whether we can build food systems that give us both.
Important Resources:
Follow Dennis Andaye online:
https://www.instagram.com/dennisandaye/
https://ke.linkedin.com/in/dennis-andaye-9a17b744
Follow the Organic Farmers' Market pages:
https://www.instagram.com/farmersmarketnairobi
https://www.instagram.com/farmersmarketke
https://www.instagram.com/localproducersmarketske
https://www.instagram.com/recofkenya
Learn more about RECOF's work with farmers' markets here:
https://farmersmarketnairobi.com/
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