Local cooperatives increase cooking oil production
Some cooperatives in the country have doubled cooking oil production with the hope of giving Malawians an alternative to cholesterol-free cooking oil.
Speaking in Lilongwe during the launch of Sunpower and Thanzi cooking oil in Lilongwe last week, officials from the two companies say the new products will bring competition on the market.
Sunpower cooking oil is produced by Talimbika Agroproduction and Marketing Society (Tamacs) from Salima while Thanzi is produced by Kamwendo Cooperative Society of Mchinji.
Tamacs business manager Falison Chiwoko said are of the highest quality as the cooperative was trained in oil production under the Comesa-funded Malawi Productivity Enhancement (Mepe).
“We started production in December 2011 and currently we care producing 500 litres of oil per day. What gives us confidence is that we can sell all the 500 litres a day,” he said.
Chiwoko said the cooking oil is certified by Malawi Bureau of Standards (MBS) and meets international standards.
“So far we have a pre-certificate but we are challenging consumers to try out these products and see how good they are,” said Chiwoko whose group has 106 members.
According to Mepe data, local production of oil is poised to save Malawi over K3 billion a year which is used to import cooking oil.
On his part, principal Secretary for Trade Cliff Chiunda said the launch of the two products is testimony that Malawi can add value to its agricultural produce.
“We are moving in the right direction when it comes to building capacity of cooperatives to produce high quality products,” he said.
Mepe project is part of a Comesa and Regional Integration Support Mechanism (Rism) and a catalyst to the Buy Malawi Strategy. It addresses the key productive capacity constraints identified in the National Export Strategy.
