Nestlé inaugurates factory in Democratic Republic of Congo

Swiss food company Nestlé has inaugurated its first facility in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) with an investment of CHF15m ($15.96m).

Located in Kinshasa, the factory opened in 2011 but has now become fully operational. It produces micronutrient-fortified Maggi culinary products such as bouillon cubes and tablets.

Nestlé noted that this investment is part of the company’s long-term efforts to develop products that are better suited to local tastes and nutritional needs.

Nestlé Equatorial African Region head Ian Donald said that the company has experienced significant growth in DRC since opening its first distribution centres and sales offices in 2009, and is continuing to drive that growth with the new factory.

"It is not only enabling us to respond to the needs of our consumers more quickly, but also to help improve the livelihoods of the local suppliers we are working with," Donald added.

Maggi bouillons and tablets are part of the company’s popularly positioned products (PPP) range, which provides lower income consumers with access to affordable and tasty nutrition.

These products are often available in single servings to allow them to be purchased on a daily basis, and are carefully developed to help meet micronutrient deficiencies in specific regions.

Nestlé said that the Kinshasa site is a finishing factory, which features a flexible design that makes it easily adaptable to various manufacturing needs such as processing ingredients or packing products.

In DRC, Nestlé offers brands such as Maggi, Nido and Nescafé.

The inauguration of the Kinshasa factory follows the opening of Nestlé’s milk powder factory in Angola in August 2012.

Both factories were built as part of the company’s three-year plan, which was launched in 2010, to invest CHF150m ($159.69m) in Equatorial Africa.

In the African continent, the company has invested $1.2bn over the last five years to strengthen its local manufacturing capabilities, expand its distribution networks and develop more products customised to local tastes and needs.

Nestlé has a total of 29 factories in Africa, and expects its business in the region to more than double by 2020.

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Image: Nestlé’s new site in the Democratic Republic of Congo is a finishing factory for micronutrient-fortified Maggi culinary products. Photo courtesy of Nestlé.