GOVERNMENT has offered food manufacturer, National Foods Holdings Limited (NFHL full support because it believes the entity is playing a key role in the national food production chain.
The announcement was made last Thursday when NFHL launched a new line of food production, the National Foods Traditional Grains Processed Foods.
This new line will solely process traditional grains.
Speaking at the event, Industry and Commerce minister Sekai Nzenza said NFHL had become an invaluable support unit in helping government ensure there is food security.
“From an Industry and Commerce perspective, National Foods is clearly playing a central role in bringing about economic growth and stability and also assisting the government and the ministry in moving the economy up the value chain through value addition,” she said.
“I certainly applaud National Foods for being key and central in ensuring that every household in Zimbabwe is well fed. It is from this field to the table concept that will see Zimbabweans being healthy. Once we are all healthy, we can all contribute immensely to the turnaround of our economy.”
She said such companies as National Foods deserve and will get all the necessary government support because of the strategic role they play.
NFHL’s production value chain utilises raw materials that include maize, rice and wheat. By-products from maize and wheat milling are also utilised in the manufacture of stockfeed.
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Zimbabwe’s chief council president Chief Fortune Charumbira promised to mobilise traditional grain deliveries to NFHL.
“Thank you very much Mr Lashbrook (NFHL chief executive officer Michael Lashbrook) for honouring chiefs like you did today. Indeed, we are the custodians of these traditional and small grains, however, few companies acknowledge us. A lot of companies do their own things but you Mr Lashbrook and National Foods have exhibited respect to us,” he said.
“As part of our promise to National Foods, as traditional leaders, we will mobilise Zimbabwe at large to grow small grains and deliver to you for processing and buy your products. This is what we call proper backward and forward industrial integration through traditional leaders.”
Ministry of Lands, Agriculture, Fisheries, Water, Climate and Rural Development permanent secretary, John Basera reiterated Nzenza’s sentiments of supporting NFHL.
“We have a great ally and critical stakeholder in National Foods. We therefore need to ensure that we support these companies through positive policy frameworks. I am glad to report that my ministry fully supports and recognises the work that National Foods are doing,” Basera said.
“Coming to the business of the day, I applaud Mr Mike Lashbrook and his team for being so ingenious in coming up with and innovating around these traditional and small grains processed foods. This is a timeous intervention by Mr Lashbrook. The issues of global climatic changes require all of us to be quick and agile in our strategies. Small grains are adaptable to these new climate challenges.”
He also said small grains are easy to grow and NFHL should be in a position to process them for every Zimbabwean.
First lady Auxilia Mnangagwa was the guest of honour at the event.
The government is promoting the growing of traditional grains in dry regions to mitigate vagaries of climate change and diversify food production and consumption away from maize to promote nutritional diets.
The government also created the Agricultural Productive Social Protection System fund, into which government allocated $18 billion to provided 540 000 needy households with 5kg of sorghum seed and 260 000 families with 2kg of millet seed.
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