Dti pushes agro-processing agenda

Government wants to deepen the value chain in the agro-processing sector as it is one of the important sectors of trade.

Acting head of Investment Promotions and Interdepartmental Clearing House at the department of trade and Industry (dti), Yunus Hoosen, said government was providing a platform for agro-processing projects.

"The South African government is doing this by unlocking one million hectares of land to the sector where small companies need to fit in and form joint ventures. A number of big companies, such as Unilever for example, are looking for smaller companies to supply them with raw material and small businesses needed to take advantage of this," said Hoosen.

He was speaking at an investment seminar that forms part of the inward investment mission undertaken by Italian companies operating in the agro-processing sector.
According to Hoosen, the South African government was also trying to deepen supply chains for a lot of multinational companies expanding in South Africa.

He told the Italian investors that there were a number of institutions in South Africa that could provide them with support and funding to set up in the country.
One of the Italian business delegates, Professor Allesandro Arioli, said he had come to South Africa because he wanted to get an understanding of the dynamics of sustainable development within the country.

He said he was pleased to discover that South Africa was giving a lot of attention to the agro-processing sector and that there was huge potential for transfer of technologies -  especially to black farmers in the country.

"We are interested in the transfer of the know-how through providing training and establishing joint ventures with companies in this country. We realise that there are perfect compatibilities and synergies between Italian and black businesses," he added.

The mission concluded on Wednesday with delegates participating in business-to-business meetings and visiting sites in the Free State and Mpumalanga provinces.