Elangeni Milling invests E160m,
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At the moment, Elangeni Milling produces three brands of maize meal; Top Score, Sun Sun and Top Notch, according to the CEO, they want to add the production of samp, however, there are some limitations. IIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIllllllllllllllllll
M- In a bid to address issued of food security and unemployment, Elangeni Milling is set to invest about E160 million to expand its mill and build a 10 tonne per hour flour mill in Matsapha.
This plan, which will create over 200 job opportunities for emaSwati, was revealed by the Minister of Commerce Industry and Trade, Manqoba Khumalo, and Marthinus Van Dyk, who is the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of OLE Farming, which is trading as Elangeni Milling. They unpacked the plan yesterday when the minister was touring Elangeni Milling, which is currently located at Nhlambeni.
At the moment, Elangeni Milling produces three brands of maize meal; Top Score, Sun Sun and Top Notch, but according to the CEO, they want to add the production of samp, however, there are some limitations.
He said one of the limitations included that their structure was not suitable for the production of samp.
An Elangeni Milling worker packing Top Score Maize Meal during the tour.
In that regard, he said they would soon move to Matsapha Industrial Site, where they would be able to expand. By so doing, he said they would be able to assist in addressing the concern of food security in the country and its neighbours.
Key
On the same note, the minister said the objectives of Elangeni Milling aligned well with the key pillars of government in as far as combating food insecurity was concerned.
He said the company started operating in the country in 2016 as farmers ventured into producing maize meal in 2019. The minister further said over the years, the company had moved up the ladder to be number two in the country in terms of quality and markets.
He added that currently, the company was producing brands for their clients, which included Top Score, which was a household name for maize meal in the country. Having been operating in the country for these years, the minister said they saw it fit for the company to expand its footprint in the milling industry, focusing primarily on wheat flour meal.
Again, he said this aligns well with government’s strategic road map for revitalising the economy through increasing re-investments and expansion in the country. He added that this was an existential diversification opportunity that had arisen as a spin-off from big projects that the ministry, through its designated institutions had facilitated, including the likes of Kellogg Tolaram Eswatini (Pty) Ltd, who are using high volumes of flour.
Thereafter, Khumalo said Elangeni Milling had seized the opportunity to establish a 10 tonne per hour flour mill to serve the local industry’s needs. He said the company would invest about E160 million for the project and create more than 200 jobs during the construction and operation phases.
Constraints
He said the ministry had already allocated the necessary land measuring to 2.5 hectares for the project. He added that they were aware of the supply constraints currently experienced by the local industry and they believed that building the productive capacity for wheat milling would be beneficial to the country. Furthermore, he said the increase of the milling capacity was also signalling the need for