Here’s the latest in ESM’s regular series, Notes From Africa, which brings you the latest retail, consumer goods, and food-and-beverage stories from across the African continent. Past editions can be found here.
Malawi: Illovo Sugar Reports 11% Profit Decline in H1 2024
Illovo Sugar Ltd, a leading sugar producer in Malawi, has reported an 11% decline in profits for the first half of 2024, amounting to K22 billion ($12.69 million) compared to the same period last year.
Despite an increase in revenue by K22 billion ($12.69 million) to K139 billion ($80 million), the company’s operating profit dropped to K29 billion ($16.73 million), a decrease of K20 billion ($1.5 million) from the previous year. Illovo Sugar Ltd operates two sugar estates and has grown to become one of the largest sugar producers in Malawi.
Burkina Faso: Government Inaugurates Tomato Processing Facility
In Burkina Faso, a new tomato processing facility has been commissioned. The $8 million unit is expected to mitigate post-harvest losses by processing locally grown tomatoes into paste, puree, and sauces, thereby reducing waste and dependence on imported tomato products.
Funded by the Agency for the Promotion of Community Entrepreneurship, the project is anticipated to generate 100 direct jobs and over 5,000 indirect jobs.
Côte d'Ivoire: Cashew Processing Unit Launched
A cashew nut processing unit has been launched in Boundiali, located in the Bagoué region of Côte d'Ivoire. Costing a total of 15 billion Fcfa ($25 million), the plant was financed by the Emirati company Pan African Agro Commodities (PAAC), which specialises in the trading of agricultural raw materials.
Occupying an area of 10 hectares, the plant has a processing capacity of 50 tonnes of cashew nuts per day, or over 18,000 tonnes per year. PAAC aims to increase the processing capacity of its new plant to 150,000 tonnes per year. This processing unit has already created 5,000 direct and indirect jobs, with the potential to more than triple this number to 16,000 in the long term.
Zambia/Zimbabwe: Varun Beverages To Invest $14m In Snacks
Varun Foods Zimbabwe (VFZ) and Varun Beverages Zambia (VBZ), subsidiaries of the Indian food group Varun Beverages Limited (VBL), have signed agreements with Saudi Arabia's Premier Nutrition LLC, a subsidiary of the US PepsiCo group, to produce, distribute, and market snacks in Zambia and Zimbabwe.
Under this new partnership, the VBL subsidiaries will each invest $7 million, for a total of $14 million, to finance the construction of two snack manufacturing units in Zimbabwe and Zambia, respectively.
According to local media reports, each of these sites will have an annual production capacity of 5,000 tonnes of snacks, a flagship brand of corn-based snacks owned by PepsiCo. The agreement will come into effect in Zimbabwe, with the processing plant scheduled to start operations by October 2025, while Zambia will have to wait until April 2026 for its plant to be operational.
Tanzania: Grain Storage Center Launched
In Tanzania, a grain storage center has been launched in Mpanda, located in the Katavi region. Costing a total of 14 billion shillings ($5.3 million), the facility is administered by the National Food Reserve Agency (NFRA). According to local media reports, the new center comprises modern storage silos and warehouses with a combined capacity of 23,000 tons.
The NFRA previously operated only 30 storage facilities with an estimated total capacity of almost 290,000 tonnes. This new project in the Katavi region is part of a government strategy to increase the country's total grain storage capacity to 3 million tonnes by 2030.
Cameroon: Afisa To Build Eight Silos
Cameroonian miller Afisa Food Industry SA is building eight silos in the port of Douala. According to local media reports, each of these grain storage silos has a capacity of 5,000 tonnes, giving a total storage capacity of 40,000 tonnes.
The project, the cost of which has not been disclosed, is expected to be completed by the end of the year.
