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Angola to invest US$5.7B to raise grain production to 6m tonnes

Part of the funds will be advanced to financial institutions including the Development Bank of Angola (BDA), the Angolan Venture Capital Active Fund (FACRA), and commercial banks to improve access for local private sector operators to credit with more attractive interest rates.

Agriculture has become a key government priority in recent years as revenues from oil started to decline and become increasingly unpredictable due to price instability in the global market.

ANGOLA - Angola has announced plans to invest US$5.7 billion in various agriculture-focused projects under the National Plan for Grain Production dubbed PlanaGrao with an overall goal of raising grain production to 6 million tonnes by 2027.

The plan revealed by the Ministry of Economy and Planning is aimed at reducing dependence on grain imports. From the Angola executive report, import bill for this category of foodstuffs amounts to more than US$791 million each year and is mainly driven by purchases of wheat and rice.

Under PlanoGrao the country intends to reduce this import bill by raising its grain production from the current 3 million tonnes to 5 million tonnes for maize, wheat, and rice and an additional 1 million tonnes for legumes.

According to the executives, part of the US$5.7 billion investment will be channeled to renovation of road infrastructure to open up production areas and increase the surface area of targeted crops on 2 million hectares of additional agricultural land.

Out of the 2 million hectares earmarked for agriculture, 673,000 hectares will be used for wheat production, according to the report from the Ministry of Economy and Planning. 600,000 hectares will be used in rice production, while 400,000 hectares will be put under soybean cultivation, while 326,000 hectares will be reserved for corn production.

The impact of these diversification programs can be most felt in wheat milling where 4 milling factories have opened since 2017, increasing the country’s total capacity to approximately 1 million tonnes.

OUT OF THE 2M HECTARES EARMARKED FOR AGRICULTURE, 673,000 HECTARES WILL BE USED FOR WHEAT PRODUCTION.

Mexican baker Grupo Bimbo to spend more than US$600M to build 2 new US plants

USA – Grupo Bimbo, the maker of Sara Lee, Entenmann’s and Thomas’ English Muffins, is investing more than $600 million to build two plants in the U.S.

A facility in Valdosta, Georgia, will cost at least US$200 million and have nearly 300 new jobs. It will be the second plant run by Grupo Bimbo in the city. A US$431 million plant in Zanesville, Ohio, will create at least 320 jobs. The facilities in Ohio and Georgia were announced by the governors of each state.

Bimbo Bakeries, the Mexico-based company’s U.S. arm, declined to comment, according to a firm representing the company. The Mexico-based company has 203 plants and more than 1,700 sales centers around the world.

Across town in Oakwood, Georgia, US bakery firm King’s Hawaiian is planning to build a new US$85 million plant in an effort to expand its production capacity.

The 150,000 sq ft facility, touted to create more than 160 jobs, will be in addition to its current site in Oakwood, Georgia, which produces the majority of King’s Hawaiian products.

GAIL receives US$1.23M to boost maize and soybean production in Nigeria

Snacks maker Edita Foods installs second production line in Moroccan facility

MOROCCO – Edita Foods, an Egyptian packaged snacks maker, has expanded its Moroccan operations with the installation of a second production line at its recently opened facility in Berrechid.

The establishment of the new line comes less than a year since the snack manufacturing giant expanded its presence in the North African market with the inauguration of its first overseas production facility in Morocco.

NIGERIA - Golden Agri – Inputs Limited (GAIL), a subsidiary of Flour Mills of Nigeria Plc (FMN), has received 562.9 million naira (US$1.23M) in co-investment grants from Trade and Investment Hub (Trade Hub)- a USAID-funded initiative in West Africa.

GAIL is co-investing over 3 billion naira (US$ 6.7M) into the agricultural productivity initiative which targets to help 10,000 small holder farmers to increase the productivity of maize and soybean and minimize post-harvest losses.

According to a statement from FMN, the initiative dubbed ‘Yalwa Abundance,’ will engage the small holder farmers in an out-grower program to cultivate 10,000hectares (Ha) of land.

The farmers, 30% being female and young farmers respectively, will be provided with improved agronomic trainings, extension support, and input loans.

FMN expects the project to generate 22,500 MT of maize and 12,500 MT of soybean and to create 151 new jobs thereby helping to bridge the unemployment gap in the country.

“GAIL’s co-investment with the Trade Hub to expand its “YALWA” project and to provide input credit to 10,000 smallholder farmers across four states in Nigeria is an invaluable venture for both the organization and the nation”, explained Mr. Boye Olusanya, Group Managing Director/CEO of FMN.

“This is strategic for us as a Group to progressively drive local content development in Nigeria so as to ensure that the national mandate of attaining food self-sufficiency in the nearest future is attained.”

After successfully commencing local production of its HOHOs brand in the Moroccan market, the company now seeks to introduce a new range of cake products, under Edita’s flagship brands Twinkies.

In addition to food self-sufficiency, the partnership will assist Trade Hub in promoting and expanding employment, trade & export, and investment opportunities both within the west African region and International markets.

The new Moroccan facility is owned and operated by Edita Food Industries Morocco, in partnership with Dislog Group, a leading Moroccan FMCG distributor, both holding 77% and 20% stake in the new entity respectively.

“We look forward to unlocking further growth potential in Morocco with our partner Dislog Group and are committed to increase our investments in the facility and to continue delivering new and differentiated products to strengthen our position in the market,” Edita Chairman Eng. Hani Berzi said.

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