TANZANIA – Kerry, a world-leading taste and nutrition solutions company, has opened its first manufacturing facility in Tanzania to facilitate volume growth and expansion while recognizing the current market conditions.
Tanzania, the third largest economy in East Africa and ninth in Africa, is a fast-growing economy with a thriving food processing industry, offering a crucial opportunity for the development and growth of the Irish food company.
“Kerry believes in Africa, and this new facility builds on our commitment to support the food processing industry locally and unlock the huge potential in the region,” said Kerry Group CEO Edmond Scanlon.
“Our wide portfolio of taste and nutrition technologies, coupled with our global expertise and local production, will enable us to give local customers access to high-quality ingredients with authentic taste produced in Africa and will help us respond faster to the needs of our customers across the continent.’’
This move is another step towards realizing Kerry’s vision of creating a world of sustainable nutrition.
The facility will support the local food and beverage manufacturers, considering its mover advantage in local food ingredients manufacturing in East Africa.
The investment follows an earlier move to increase Kerry’s African footprint with the launch of the largest and most advanced taste facility in South Africa.
Kerry also has a significant presence in East Africa following its acquisition of regional food ingredients supplier Afribon.
Afribon specializes in the development, production, and marketing of food flavors, comprising five production sites in Rwanda, Cameroon, Kenya, Uganda, and Tanzania.
The combination of Kerry and Afribon brought technology leadership and sustainable growth while assisting clients with proprietary consumer insights to bring the next generation of food products to life through taste, health & wellness, and sugar reduction.
Q3 earnings impacted by dairy business
Earlier, Kerry announced that it expects full-year earnings growth to be at the low end of its previously stated range following a sharp third-quarter decline in volumes and pricing in its small dairy business, the company said on Thursday.
It said taste and nutrition, which comprised 94% of Kerry’s US$1.28 billion in earnings last year, was firmly positioned for volume and margin growth after volumes rose 1.6% in the quarter and margins jumped 130 basis points.
However, dairy volumes tumbled 12% from July to September to stand 6.2% lower year-to-date, with a 17.6% quarterly price fall relating to “increased deflationary market dynamics.”
As a result, Kerry, which also announced a US$320.4 million share buyback program on Thursday, said it expected full-year earnings growth to be at the low end of its previously stated 1 to 5% constant currency range.
