Olam Agri is planning to invest approximately $400 million in additional food and feed processing infrastructure across Africa by 2028, positioning itself to capture growing demand for meat, fish and convenient food products as the continent’s population expands and consumption patterns evolve, as reported by Bloomberg. The investment will support new poultry and fish feed factories, grain processing facilities and additional wheat milling capacity, with Nigeria, Cameroon and Côte d’Ivoire among the key markets. The planned expenditure comes on top of approximately $115 million the company has invested in West African processing facilities since 2024. Saurabh Mehra, Olam Agri’s head of food and feed processing, said population growth, rising incomes and changing diets were driving increased demand for food, feed and protein across the continent.
The expansion will include new animal feed manufacturing facilities in Nigeria, Cameroon and Côte d’Ivoire, where Olam Agri plans to enter the food and feed processing market for the first time in the latter. The company also intends to expand pasta production capacity in Ghana and is assessing opportunities in Southern Africa, including Angola. Once fully operational, the planned feed factories in Nigeria, Cameroon and Côte d’Ivoire are expected to purchase more than 500,000 tonnes of maize and soybeans annually from over 130,000 smallholder farmers. Additional storage infrastructure will support the sourcing and preservation of locally produced crops, while Olam Agri’s international trading network will help supplement domestic supplies where local production falls short. The investment is designed to strengthen the company’s presence across the agricultural value chain, from commodity sourcing and processing to manufacturing and distribution.
The strategy reflects a broader transformation in Africa’s food economy, where urbanisation, population growth and changing household consumption are increasing demand for affordable processed foods and animal protein. The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development and the Food and Agriculture Organization have projected that meat consumption across Africa will increase by approximately one-third over the next decade, creating opportunities for businesses involved in livestock production, feed manufacturing and food processing. Olam Agri, which has operated in Africa since 1989, is among the continent’s major wheat millers and has established operations in food manufacturing, edible oils and animal nutrition. The company is now majority-owned by Saudi Agricultural and Livestock Investment Company following a transaction that increased its stake to 81.81 per cent in 2026. Its latest investment programme underscores the growing commercial importance of local food manufacturing and the opportunity to capture more value within Africa’s agricultural supply chains.
