Food processing plant.[photo/2scale.org]
Foreign food processing and marketing firms eyeing the local market have expressed huge optimism prior to finalising their entry plans.
The firms drawn mainly from Middle East, Europe and South Africa believe that the country is a favourable trade destination in Africa owing to its thriving economy.
Some firms bank on the country’s population of more than 40 million, which they see as a huge customer base for their products.
“Kenya’s agricultural sector would form a major market for our products” says John Muthee, a service engineer for GEA, a German-based engineering company that manufactures food processing equipment.
“We have supplied machines to milk processors and the market is still large,” he said at a recent food expo.
GEA’s products are already in use in some major milk processing companies in the country.
Some are citing Kenya’s transport infrastructure which they believe will help them penetrate most potential regions and major cities.
“It is easy to transport goods in Kenya by rail or land,” Hani Sammour from Saudi Arabia said while speaking on behalf of manufacturing companies that make caps for food cans and beverage bottles.
With the recent ban of plastic bags, food manufacturers are being forced to outsource alternative packaging where glass and metal cans might be a conducive option.
Kenya’s strategic point seems to attract investors eyeing the wider east Africa region and investing in the region’s most potential economy gives them hope of reaping big profits.
Faffa Food, an Ethiopian processing company that specialises in baby food also hopes to extend operations in East Africa by starting in Kenya.
“As food processors, we hope to capture the country’s huge population and a growing economy by introducing affordable foods,” said Haireya Ahmed, Faffa’s Commercial director.
While most companies believe that Kenya will offer a good market for their products, some believe that their products will offer a fair competition to local goods.