25/02/2015
US business exchange delegates praise home-grown agribusiness
LUSAKA, ZAMBIA – Hiring and training staff are among of the keys to building a successful business, according to Zambeef Products Joint Chief Executive Officer Francis Grogan, who was on hand to reveal the secrets of the company’s success to visiting American entrepreneurs in Chisamba today (February 24).
The agribusiness giant was hosting a tour of delegates from the Meridian International Center in the USA, who were part of an entrepreneurial exchange programme under which Zambian small business owners have also visited the US to learn more about enterprise.
“In just over 21 years, Zambeef has grown from a single butchery in Lusaka to having a turnover of US$279 million in 2014, and subsequently becoming a power force in its own right, ensuring that Zambeef continues to not just stay ‘Proudly Zambian’ but most importantly, continue feeding the nation,” said Mr Grogan.
Addressing the visitors, he said: “Here in Zambia we have the capacity to go even further and feed the 400 million inhabitants of our eight neighbouring countries.”
The Vice President of Meridian International Center, Gretchen Ehle explained how she and her fellow delegates contributed to global leadership development by having previously taken 20 Zambians and Zimbabweans on a five-week mentorship program in the USA.
Zambeef Abattoir Manager Ryan Crause (centre) discussed entrepreneurship with visitors from the Meridian International Center in the US
It became clear throughout the tour that in terms of entrepreneurship, Zambeef exhibited its own impressive standards, equal to those found in developed countries.
As the party was shown around the plant by Abattoir Manager Ryan Crause, Ms Ehle said she was “really impressed with the commitment to sourcing local produce” as well as the “more natural approach to production’”, while Sean Murphy, another fellow, compared the quality and standards of Zambeef to “the same as what we would get in the States”.
Zambeef management discuss entrepreneurship with US entrepreneurs
The group was treated to a tour of Zambeef’s meat processing plant, its dairy operations, and feedlot, as well as hearing about Zambeef’s vision of making a concentrated effort to use local companies as much as possible, as Mr Grogan went on to explain.
About Zambeef Products Plc
Zambeef Products Plc is the largest integrated agribusinesses in Zambia.
The group is principally involved in the production, processing, distribution and retailing of beef, chicken, pork, milk, dairy products, eggs, stock feed and flour. The group also has large row cropping operations (principally maize, soya beans and wheat), with approximately 8,350 hectares of row crops under irrigation and 17,000 hectares of rain-fed/dry-land crops available for planting each year. The group is also in the process of rolling out its West Africa expansion in Nigeria and Ghana, as well as developing a palm project in Zambia.
It slaughters more than 80,000 beef cattle and 6 million chickens, and processes 8 million litres of milk per year. The company has 122 retail outlets throughout the country, along with three wholesale depots.
More information is available at www.zambeefplc.com
For media inquiries, please contact:
Gillian Langmead at Langmead & Baker Ltd
(0979) 060705
