Nestlé Inaugurates its CHF 36.2 Million Infant Cereal Plant in Ghana

Completed in August 2010, the plant’s capacity is currently 9,000 tonnes of Cerelac per year, having increased from its former annual 7,000 tonnes at the Nestlé Tema factory.

Sep 14 2010 --- Nestlé aims to double the capacity of infant cereal at its new state-of-the-art plant in Ghana.

The site an extension of the existing Nestlé Tema factory which sources locally-produced rice, wheat, flour and sugar from Ghanaian suppliers was officially opened by Hon. Hannah Tetteh, Ghana Minister of Trade and Industry, Etienne Benet, Head of the Central & West Africa Region (CWAR) and Samer Chedid, Managing Director for Nestlé Ghana, on September 9, 2010.

Having announced an investment of CHF 36.2 million (over GHS 51.1 million) in January 2008 for the construction of the plant, Nestlé Ghana aims to double its capacity to 18,000 tonnes of infant cereal per year having earmarked future expansion.

Completed in August 2010, the plant’s capacity is currently 9,000 tonnes of Cerelac per year, having increased from its former annual 7,000 tonnes at the Nestlé Tema factory.

Etienne Benet, Head of the Central & West Africa Region (CWAR), said: “As the world leader of nutrition, health and wellness, we are proud to remain the pioneer of investment in Africa. Our strong commitment to the continent has been consistent for many years and we are determined to continue in this exciting journey with the inauguration of this new infant cereal plant.”

Samer Chedid, Managing Director for Nestlé Ghana, added: “Nestlé has been a steadfast, socially responsible corporate citizen of Ghana. We’ve experienced fulfilling and challenging moments in this country and today, we can proudly say that the socio-economic stability experienced in the past two decades have fostered the belief that the Ghanaian economy, and its people can respond favourably to such an investment.”

As the first of its kind in the Central and West Africa region, the plant is equipped with the latest food processing technology. By aiming to lessen fossil energy consumption by around 15%, all the new chillers in the plant will use an environmentally-friendly refrigerant to combat the impact on the ozone layer and help reduce production costs.

Nestlé Ghana’s 39-year-old Tema factory was opened for manufacturing in 1971 producing Ideal milk and Milo products.