Summary of Proposed Investment
Project Number
7443
Company Name
Midlands Milling Company (Pvt.) Limited
Date SPI Disclosed
Apr 23, 1996
Country
Zimbabwe
Industry
Agribusiness and Forestry
Status
Completed
Sector
Grain Processing (Milling, Starch, Flour, Malt)
Department
Regional Industry - MAS Africa
Environmental Category
B - Limited
Previous Events
Approved : Jun 28, 1996
Signed : Sep 6, 1996
Invested : Feb 25, 1997
Project Description
Summary Of Project Information (SPI)
| Project Name | Zimbabwe-Midlands |
| Region | Sub-Saharan Africa |
| Sector |
Projected Board DateMay 23, 1996
Company NameMidlands Milling Company (Pvt.) Limited
Technical Partner and/or Major Shareholders
Five of the current fourteen shareholders represent the founding members of the Company and they jointly have majority control. Another major shareholder is Consolidated Farming Investments (CFI) Limited which controls around 35% ownership. One of CFI’s subsidiary buys the offals generated by the Company for use in manufacturing livestock feed.
Project Cost Including proposed IFC investment
US$9.35 million of which IFC has been requested to provide US$3.0 million (US$2.0 million of loan and US$1.0 of equity)
Location of project and Description of site
Harare, Zimbabwe
Description of Company and Purpose of Project
Midlands was established in 1929 and currently has capacity to mill 148 tons per day of wheat and 170 tons per day of maize. In addition to wheat flour and maize flour, Midlands produces a wide range of other products, including snackfood based of maize grits, wheat and maize brans, stockfeeds for poultry and dog meals. In addition, the Company breaks bulk of several consumer products, like rice, salt, groundnut, etc., for repackaging into small sizes for retail sale, primarily to utilize its marketing channels more fully. The proposed project will erect a new wheat flour with 140 tons per day capacity in Harare. Most of Zimbabwe’s wheat is grown around Harare and the city is the primary market for flour products. Thus, the project will translate into lower transportation cost on wheat input and flour output, which are important competition considerations arising from Zimbabwe’s reform programs that deregulated the marketing functions of the state agency Grain Marketing Board and dismantled the price controls on bread. IFC’s assistance will play a complementary role to the Bank’s efforts in bringing about the reforms. IFC will assist the private sector to adjust to the new environment, help to jump-start the supply reponse, and enhance competition in wheat flour milling. In addition, IFC will be a catalyst for the listing of Midlands’ shares on the local stock exchange, thereby helping to deepen capital market activities in the country.
Environmental Category and Issues
This is a category B project according to IFC’s environmental review procedure. Environmental and occupational health and safety issues associated with this project include site location, air emission control, solid waste recycling, noise emission, fire and dust explosion prevention, and compliance of existing facilities. The project site is located in an industrial area with direct access to the national rail system. Air pollution is controlled by a combination of cyclones and bag filters. Of the 140 tons of grain processed per day, approximately 110 tons will end up as flour. The remaining 30 tons of organic material will be used for production of stock feed. The overall facility will have low ambient noise emissions. The milling operation itself will be encapsulated, and employees in need of visiting this area will use hearing protection. Fire and dust explosion prevention is an integral part of the mill design. A health and safety committee is meeting regularly to ensure a continuous high safety standard. Midlands is presently carrying out environmental audits for its existing mills and any deviation from full compliance with local requirements and World Bank guidelines will immediately be corrected. IFC will ensure ongoing compliance with World Bank guidelines during the life of the project by evaluating monitoring reports submitted annually to IFC by Midlands and by conducting periodic supervison.
The is from the Public Information Center.
| Date SPI sent to PIC | April 23, 1996 |
For Additional Information contact: Corporate Relations Unit -
telephone: (202) 473-7711
facsimile: (202) 676-0365
Environmental documents for this project are available at http://www.ifc.org and from the World Bank InfoShop (http://www.worldbank.org/html/pic/aboutinfo.html).
Sponsor / Cost / Location
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