Bakers Association applauds Innscor’s Bulawayo investments
THE Bakers Association of Zimbabwe (BAZ) has applauded the commissioning of the US$30 million bakery investment by the listed Innscor Africa Limited group saying the expansion of the sector and adoption of new production technologies should improve supplies and stabilise costs.
President Mnangagwa commissioned the highly-automated Baker’s Inn factory last week and was charmed by the technological absorption and commitment by the company to boost Bulawayo investments.
The new Baker’s Inn plant has the capacity to produce about 160 000 loaves of bread daily, marking a significant milestone for the industry.
Commenting on the development, BAZ president, Mr Wellington Peyama, said the association was grateful that the industry is growing and expressed confidence that the benefits of having a growing sector will be passed on to consumers.
He said transport costs were affecting major product pricing hence the opening of the bakery plant in Bulawayo would improve services in the entire southern region.
Irrigation
“Now that the Southern region has the biggest bakery which produces 160 000 loaves a day, it means the cost of reaching the consumers will be reduced,” said Mr Peyama.
He said people in the Southern region were at times forced to eat stale bread as a result of bulk deliveries which lasted for days.
“This is now a thing of the past as customers in Bulawayo and the entire Southern region will be enjoying fresh bread,” said Mr Peyama.
President Mnangagwa called upon the milling and baking industry to increase the number of contracted farmers to complement Government efforts to boost supply of raw materials for baking.
He said the initiative will not only boost domestic wheat production but also benefit the production of other crops.
Government is targeting to increase wheat production to meet the national requirement in line with the Agriculture and Food Systems Transformation Strategy, the Agriculture Recovery Plan and the National Development Strategy 1 (NDS 1) in pursuit of the vision of becoming an empowered and prosperous upper-middle income economy by 2030.
Wheat is mostly grown under irrigation during the winter season, which runs from May to July with the crop being harvested from October to December.
Meanwhile, Proton Bakers, one of the country’s biggest bread producers, has embarked on an expansion drive involving installation of a new US$3,6 million plant, which will increase output by 60 000 loaves of bread per day.
The improved economic environment in the country has persuaded Proton Bakers to invest in the plant that will increase its daily bread output to 200 000 loaves a day in addition to a variety of confectionery products. — chronicle
