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Following stiff competition from imported flour produced at low cost and therefore cheaper, the company closed down the mill and relocated to Harare.
The company’s managing director Mr Chipo Nheta said this time around the company was more than ready face the competition.
“We have come up with new technology that is meant to boost quality to match international standards and we want our customers to see the change.
“The months we were closed, were not wasted as we took that opportunity to strategise and come up with new ideas to improve our operations,” Mr Nheta said in an interview after the re-opening of the mill.
He said the branch will apart from the flour also produce stock feeds for farmers.
“Farmers were spending a lot of money importing stock feeds from Zambia, South Africa and many other neighbouring countries but now we are producing them locally because wheat by-products are used to produce stockfeed,” he said.
Mr Nheta also said the reopening of the flour plant created employment for an additional 120 to bring the staff complement to 720 workers.
“In order to ensure Bulawayo residents benefit from this new development, most of the workers at the mill were recruited locally.
Companies that are in the packaging industry and the transport sector are set to benefit from this development,” he said.
Mr Nheta commended the Government for re-introducing the five percent customs duty on some imported basic commodities in the 2012 national budget saying this would help to revive some of the local industries including those that produce raw materials like flour.
“We would like to thank the Government for reintroducing duty but we feel the five percent duty is too low and some businesses as a result might continue to import products that are being manufactured locally,” Mr Nheta said.
Officially opening the flour mill, the Governor and Resident Minister of Bulawayo Ambassador Cain Mathema said by reopening the mill, the company was contributing to the “Let Bulawayo Survive Campaign”.
“Many companies have relocated to Harare with some closing down in the process but I am glad that your company has reopened a new look mill that will guarantee residents and the business community flour and stock feeds at affordable prices.
“This development may sound small but National Foods has positively impacted on the local businesses that no longer import flour,” he said.
The Governor commended the company for coming up with a new technology meant to improve quality while at the same time cutting on production costs.
He said it was critical for local businesspeople to desist from depending on imported technology saying the country had the potential to manufacture its own equipment.
“People should stop complaining about old machinery but should be innovative and come up with their own machinery that is produced locally,” he said.
Ambassador Mathema urged the local businesspeople to be innovative and desist from politicising issues that have nothing to do with business growth and development.
Online Reporter