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Business Reporter
SOUTH African company Willowton has completed the construction of a cooking oil plant in Mutare, with production expected to begin in the next two months, an official said.
The construction of the $40 million plant started about 12 months ago and is expected to create 100 jobs directly. Willowton, which operates three plants in South Africa produces the popular D ’lite cooking oil brand, well known on the domestic market.
“We are now testing the machines and we should be able to start refining crude edible oil in the next one and half to two months,” said the official who requested to be anonymous.
“The product (crude) is now in Beira and the trucks should be in the country in two weeks’ time.”
Willowton manufactures a wide range of products, which include edible oils, margarines and spreads, toiletries, laundry and bathing soaps, candles, chocolates, baking and industrial fats.
The project is expected breathe life in Mutare’s business sector, which in the recent years experienced de-industrialisation as many companies were forced to close due to economic challenges.
Zimbabwe has four main oil expressers, with crushing capacity of 24 000 tonnes of oil seed per month. These are ETG Parrogate, Surface Investments, Olivine and United Refineries.
But due to a shortage of oil seeds in Zimbabwe, manufactures are largely depending on importing crude edible oil for refining.
However, they had been a shortage of the product due delays in the processing of outgoing foreign payments resulting from the mis-match between the expected nostro position and the aggregate nostro position.
Last week, the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe directed that payments for importation of crude edible oil be matched by cash deposits by the manufacturing companies at the ratio of 1:1. This is meant to ensure uninterrupted availability of the raw material.
In 2014, Government imposed import restrictions on cooking oil with locally manufactured products now occupy about 95 percent of local supermarket shelf space.
Previously, South African cooking oil brands, particularly D lite dominated the market. In future, Willowton is looking at establishing an out grower programme for oil seeds.
Online Reporter