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Fradreck Gorwe
Diversified and Zimbabwe Stock Exchange (ZSE)-listed conglomerate that majors in manufacturing and marketing of food products, National Foods Holdings, had its foundations constructed on the strength of family businesses and the spirit of entrepreneurship.
The company’s history doubles as the history and development of commercial milling in Zimbabwe, hence the pride in 90 years of milling experience.
Forerunner to the conglomerate was the establishment of synergies between the Palte and the Harris families towards the end of the nineteenth century.
An independent merchant Joseph Palte formed his J. Palte and Company in 1908 in Bulawayo and traded as Miller and Merchants. In 1934 Jack Palte inherited the family business upon his father’s death. He expanded it in 1952, when Tiger Oats became major shareholders.
In 1915, Mark Harris came with his Mark Harris Manufacturing in the then Salisbury (Harare) and traded as Atlas.
In 1920, he sold his shares to the British South Africa Company (now Anglo American Corporation). A different Harris Brothers and Company was founded by C. Harris in Bulawayo the same year. The year 1920 also saw the inception of the “Gloria” brand under Mark Harris Manufacturing. The Red Seal brand ensued under C. Harris’ Harris Brothers and Company in 1925.
In 1924, Mark Harris Manufacturing was renamed Rhodesian Milling and Manufacturing Company. In 1930 production was boosted in Bulawayo following the construction of rail infrastructure and a laboratory to check on product quality. The Salisbury plant, then a recourse for maize producers, was also well networked with rail infrastructure.
The company also handled farm produce, including ground nuts and also produced Rainbow and Reliance brand soaps.
In 1956 the Rhodesian Milling and Manufacturing Company purchased Harris Brothers and Company. The Red Seal brand, however, was taken over by Harris Maize Milling and Produce Company, a company founded the same year by three sons of C. Harris.
In 1964 Harris Maize Milling and Produce Company merged with J. Palte and Company to form Palte Harris which went public as Palte Harris Industrial Holdings in 1970.
“National Foods” was a product of the 1975 merger between Palte Harris and the Rhodesian Milling and Manufacturing Company. The merger brought together the Gloria and Red Seal brands.
Inheriting was a diversification route as the company embarked on plant installations to bring in diverse products. Among the installations in 1982 alone were the Sorghum malting plant at Aspindale, the polypropylene cloth weaving plant, the hydrogenation and fat splitting plant that worked in conjunction with the oil-solvent plant and a second-hand flour mill. The phase ignited the company’s fortunes.
Having evolved from small-scale milling business, NatFoods provides resources, technology and manpower to feed millions of people. Of note is the Group’s Contract Farming schemes which saw 10 400 hectares of various cereal crops planted in the 2018-2019 farming season. Pure Oil Industries, (owned through 40 percent shareholding by National Foods), supported an additional 900 hectares of soya beans.
Other flagship brands that have taken the Zimbabwean and Southern African market by storm include NF Stock-feeds, Pearlenta, Mahatma, Snow White and Better Buy, among others. Business units include Flour Milling, Maize Milling, Snacks and Treats, National Foods Logistics (Natlog), Pure Oil and MCG. The company is considering enhancing its light manufacturing business to augment its operations.
Bongani Ndlovu