LIVINGSTONE MARUFU
Consumer staples concern, National Foods Limited (Natfoods), is expecting to commission its breakfast cereal manufacturing plant by June this year as the company ramps up production levels to meet growing demand, board chairman Todd Moyo has said.
“…The board has approved further investment into the cereal category which will allow the group to further expand its repertoire of breakfast cereals and extruded products. This investment amounts to US$ 4m and is set to avail an exciting range of affordable and nutritious breakfast cereals to the market. The project is on track to be commissioned mid-2022,” Moyo said.
The first phase of the cereal investment, Moyo said has seen the introduction of a variety of products over the past year including “Pearlenta Nutri-Active” instant maize porridge, “Better Buy Soya Delights” and more recently a “Smart Carbs” range of instant breakfast cereals.
The “Smart Carbs” cereal range is derived from traditional grains such as sorghum and millet and has been developed with the health conscious consumer in mind.
In its financial results for the six months to December 31, 2022, revenue for Natfoods jumped 26% to ZWL$ 28.03bn from ZWL$22.25bn reported in the prior comparative period, driven by volume growth and inflationary price increases.
Volume for the period increased by 15% to 304,000 tonnes compared to the prior comparative period.
Resultantly, Natfoods swung to a profit of ZWL$2.52bn in the reviewed period from a loss of ZWL$65.5m incurred in the same period the previous year.
Operational expenditure, however, increased 89% in the reviewed period compared to the previous period.
EBITDA increased by 78% to ZWL$3.53bn.
Moyo said Pure Oil Industries had challenges in the edible oil category. He attributed this to high international crude oil prices which could not be fully passed on to consumers, as well as the fact that the local expressers continue to rely on substantial imports of crude oil.
He said Natfoods continues to keenly support contract farming of maize, soya beans, wheat, sugar beans, sorghum and popcorn.
During the current summer season around 11,000 hectares have been planted, representing a 22% increase compared to last year. In addition to this, 27,000 tonnes of wheat were delivered on last winter’s cropping program.
In the outlook, Moyo said the recent measures to decentralise responsibility and sharpen accountability at a business unit level were bedding down well and the group believes have improved focus on individual product categories as well as enhanced the organisation’s agility and responsiveness.
The continued growth of market share, optimisation of operational efficiencies and reduction of expenditure remain on-going areas of focus.
