LUSAKA, ZAMBIA — Cargill announced on June 1 that it has completed the acquisition of Zamanita Ltd, the soybean crushing and oil refining subsidiary of Zambeef. Zamanita now becomes an integral part of Cargill’s business in Zambia.

As part of the deal, Cargill has acquired all of Zamanita’s assets, including the Mama’s oil and Zamanita oil brands. Cargill will continue to provide customers the high quality oil under these existing oil brands and Cargill’s experienced commercial team will work to ensure customers experience business as usual and have no interruptions of supply. 

“Cargill will immediately start an extensive investment program at the crush and refinery site in Lusaka, where upgrades will be made to machinery, tools and operational processes,” said Lezanne van Zyl, general manager of Cargill in Zambia. “Building on Zamanita’s existing strengths, we intend to bring this plant up to the high standards of quality, environmental health and safety that is associated with our company around the world. We will optimize the efficiency of the operation that will bring benefits to our customers in the food and feed sectors.” 

“Acquiring this business is a strong indicator of Cargill’s intention to grow our business in Zambia,” said Johan Steyn, head of Cargill’s grain and oilseeds business in the Middle East and Africa. “We see excellent potential in the country’s agricultural sector and this investment is aligned with Cargill’s strategy to develop our offering to farmers. For many years we have focused on working with small scale farmers in Zambia, enabling them to diversify into the cultivation of cash crops. Investing in soybean processing further enables Cargill to provide both small scale and commercial farmers with market access for their products. Our feed customers will also benefit from a high and consistent soybean meal quality, building on our worldwide experience as a leading soybean meal producer.”