Chronicle Editor
Thupeyo Muleya, Beitbridge Bureau
BAOBAB trees are the most predominant trees in semi-arid region and their fruits are delicacy to many communities around them, especially in Beitbridge district.
The baobab tree can be used for many things other than its fruits, in some cases villagers use their bucks in sewing mats or thatching roof tops.
In essence it is the longest and most majestic of trees celebrated for its longevity and agelessness.
It is against this background that renowned businesswoman, Dr Anna Muleya and the youthful entrepreneur Kudakwashe Garaipasi pooled resources to form a company, Essential Delight that specialises in making soft and hard beverages from baobab fruits.
“Our certified baobab fruit beverages are manufactured and bottled in Beitbridge, which is the heart of the baobab region in Zimbabwe. They are manufactured in nourishing flavours namely chocolate, vanilla, strawberry, and original and maheu formula and traditional brewed liquor,” said Dr Muleya.
She said the company employs mostly youthful women from around Beitbridge as part of their women and community empowerment drive.
Dr Muleya said they source the baobab fruits from suppliers mostly from the rural areas, most of whom they have trained in handling and packaging the products. She said as they were manufacturing the soft drinks based on orders though they have the capacity to produce 300 units hourly.
“We started playing around with ideas in 2018 until we managed to get all the certification in May this year. At the moment we employ very few people on full-time basis and we outsource labour when we have bigger orders.
We are employing a number of strategies including innovation to grow the market share and our focus is to become the major supplier of baobab beverages countrywide before looking at the regional market,” said Dr Muleya.
She said the company has been getting positive responses on both the local and international markets after their successful exhibitions at the Gwanda and Zimbabwe Agricultural shows.
Dr Anna said they have since been invited to participate at the Dubai Expo next year to market their products.
She said though they were licensed to manufacture soft and hard drinks at the moment they were looking at pushing soft drinks on the market.
“We are introducing our products in piecemeal, so far we are supplying most retail shops in Beitbridge among them N and R, Lucky 7 and Pedrock. In the not too distant future we are looking at producing more products from the baobab fruits among them oil drawn from their seeds,” said the businesswoman.
Dr Muleya said the baobab was a healing tree and that its fruits were a powerhouse of nutrients.
Some of the known benefits which can be derived from the fruits, she said included vitamins, potassium, iron, zinc, calcium, reducing blood sugar, lowering blood pressure, increasing bone strength, boosting immunity and aiding weight loss, among other things.
She said it was important for businesses to embrace innovation, professionalism and teamwork for them to thrive under any economic climate condition.
Bongani Ndlovu
Online Reporter