Bulawayo cooking oil plant 85% complete

Bulawayo's manufacturing sector is set for a major boost as construction of the Fats & Feeds cooking oil processing plant reaches 85 percent completion, with the multi-million-dollar industrial project expected to create up to 400 direct jobs.

The investment is expected to strengthen Zimbabwe's domestic cooking oil production capacity while opening new business opportunities for farmers, transport operators and small enterprises supplying goods and services to the factory.

The plant will specialise in processing soya beans into cooking oil through an integrated production system incorporating grain storage, oil extraction, refining and bottling.

Once operational, the facility is expected to contribute towards reducing Zimbabwe's dependence on imported finished cooking oil while promoting the local processing of agricultural produce.

Fats & Feeds sub-manager Zacharia Mupachike said construction work was progressing well, with the company now preparing to test equipment ahead of commissioning.

Speaking during a tour of the facility by Information, Publicity and Broadcasting Services Minister Zhemu Soda, Mupachike revealed that approximately 65 percent of the required machinery had already been delivered.

He expressed optimism that the factory could begin producing its first quantities of cooking oil before the end of the year.

The factory is being developed with substantial storage infrastructure designed to support large-scale operations and maintain a reliable supply of raw materials.

According to Mupachike, the facility will have storage tanks capable of holding approximately 250 000 litres each.