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.
Nigeria: Tingo Foods to Build $1.6 Billion Agribusiness Plant
Tingo Foods plans to build an agri-food processing unit in Onicha-Ugbo, Delta State, at a cost of $1.6 billion. The new plant is expected to process a wide range of agricultural commodities, including rice, tea, coffee, cashew nuts, and grains.
Once operational, it will serve as a development and distribution center for new food products for both the local and export markets. According to the company, 12,000 jobs will be created in the various agricultural value chains involved.
Kenya: FreshCrop Partners With Solynta
FreshCrop, a tuber seed producer, has partnered with the Dutch hybrid potato breeding company Solynta to develop new seed for farmers. The initiative will improve the local supply of non-GMO seeds adapted to climatic conditions and resistant to diseases to increase the yield of the Kenyan sector, which currently averages between 7 and 10 tonnes per hectare, against a potential estimated at 30-40 tonnes.
As part of the partnership, FreshCrop will use its extensive seed distribution network in Nakuru, Nyandarua, and Narok counties to facilitate the dissemination and adoption by farmers of the new potato seeds developed by Solynta's hybridisation technologies.
Egypt: Bake Land Egypt Launches Construction Of New Factory
Bake Land Egypt has started the construction of a new manufacturing unit at a total cost of 700 million Egyptian pounds ($23 million), financed by its own funds. The plant is expected to be operational within three years, and the new investment should increase its annual production capacity to 70,000 tonnes, from its current level of around 15,000 tonnes.
The initiative is part of a strategy to diversify its production in the segment of tomato concentrates to take advantage of growing demand on the local and international market.
Côte d'Ivoire: Dekel Agri-Vision To Launch Cashew Processing
Dekel Agri-Vision, an agro-industrial company in Côte d'Ivoire, plans to launch a cashew nut processing plant this year. The unit, located in the department of Tiébissou, will start with an initial processing capacity of 10,000 tonnes of nuts per year.
The move comes as the company seeks to diversify its revenues. It currently runs a nursery and a 60-tonne-per-hour oilseed extraction plant through its local subsidiary DekelOil.
Angola: Refriango, Pascual Launch Milk Processing Plant In Luanda
The Angolan government has launched a milk processing plant in the Kikuxi industrial complex in the capital, Luanda. The new unit, called Lacto RP, is a joint venture between the Angolan beverage manufacturer Refriango and the Spanish dairy group Pascual, at a total cost of $5 million.
The plant is expected to start processing five million litres of milk per year to produce milk powder and long-life milk. Initially, the plant will depend on imports of raw milk from Spain, Portugal, and New Zealand. The new investment is expected to reduce dairy product imports that currently meet about 90% of the demand on the domestic market.
Nigeria: Imota Rice Mill Inaugurated
The Nigerian government has inaugurated the largest rice processing plant in Africa. The Imota Rice mill, located in Lagos and covering an area of 8.5 hectares, has a processing capacity of 32 tonnes per hour. It is expected to produce about 2.5 million 50 kg bags of rice per year under the Eko Rice brand.
The plant is anticipated to generate approximately 1,500 direct jobs and nearly 250,000 indirect jobs for the industry's stakeholders. It is also expected to increase the milling capacity of the local industry, which currently processes 70% of paddy production, estimated at around 8 million tonnes per year according to USDA data.
© 2023 European Supermarket Magazine – your source for the latest A-brand news. Article by Espoir Olodo. Click subscribe to sign up to ESM: European Supermarket Magazine.
