Jeff Barreiro is the founder and executive chairman of Mayani. This Philippine-based agritech startup helps smallholder farmers and fishermen bring their product to supermarkets, hotels, and local food brands!

They recently raised a $1.7M seed led by AgFunder’s GROW Impact Fund. 

‍

👋🏼 How would you explain your job to someone outside tech?

My job is to keep poking into the Philippine food supply chain, and to keep finding ways for our agtech startup, Mayani, to intervene and solidly establish ways to make it efficient, fair, and profitable for our farmers and fisherfolk.

‍

🧐 What's something about you or your job that would surprise us?

I have no operating units reporting to me. 

‍

🔍 What's a startup trend or space you're watching this year?‍

Impact investing.

Imagine what the deployment of massive capital can bring to impact projects and startups, whether these be in agrifood, in climate tech, in the circular economy, in education, or in other critical sectors.

‍

💼 What advice would you give someone starting out in your industry? 

Know your northstar. Keep it to heart.

‍

🗣 What's one thing you can keep talking about for hours? 

I prefer to listen more!

‍

🎥 What's your favorite movie/TV show? 

I don’t really have one but these shows have given me loads of laughter: Modern Family, Spongebob, Brooklyn Nine-Nine, Looney Tunes.

‍

🍨 What's your go-to ice cream flavor?‍

Turtle pie from our friends over at Caramia.

‍

We've edited this interview for length and clarity.