Olivine closes Harare plant

production has slumped over the years owing to price disputes with farmers, forcing industry to depend on imports.
Olivine has a capacity of producing 2 000 litres of cooking oil per month.
An Olivine official, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said the plant ceased operating in March.
“Our plant is not operating; production stopped in March. Presently nothing is coming out of the plant,” the official said.
“Olivine alone requires 120 000 tonnes (of soyabeans),” said the official.
National demand for the crop is at 450 000 tonnes, but output barely reaches a third of national requirement.
The official said Olivine Industries was not buying the little amount of soyabeans available on the market because farmers were asking for high prices.
“Although some farmers have indicated that they now have the commodity, the prices they are asking for are not sustainable. Farmers are demanding between US$500 and US$600 per tonne which is not viable to us as it would mean we would have to hike our cooking oil price to make a profit,” said the official.
The source said liquidity constraints prevented the company from importing the commodity.
“We used to complement local supplies with imports but we have since stopped. We are now just waiting for cottonseed, which we will only be able to access in winter. Then maybe we can resume operations.”
Soyabean Promotion Task Force chairman Professor Sheunesu Mupepereki is on record as saying production structures in the country had “disintegrated”.
At peak production, in 2001, the country produced 170 000 tonnes of the legume. – New Ziana.