Table of Contents
Key Points
- Bakhresa commits $500 million to expand drinks factory, doubling daily output to 300,000 cartons and marking 50 years of operations.
- BFPL sources fruit from 100,000 farmers, reinforcing local agricultural ties and promoting quality raw material production through cooperatives.
- Exports grow beyond East Africa, with new shipments reaching Yemen and Oman as BFPL ramps up production and regional market reach.
Tanzanian multimillionaire Said Bakhresa, one of the country's richest individuals and the founder of Bakhresa Group, is doubling down on his packaged food business. Through Bakhresa Food Products Limited (BFPL), he is investing $500 million to expand the company’s drinks factory in Mwandege, a town in the Mkuranga district of the Pwani Region. The move is aimed at boosting production and reinforcing the company’s leadership in the regional market.
The new investment will increase the factory’s daily output from 150,000 to 300,000 cartons. Spread across 17 hectares, the upgraded facility forms part of the company’s 50th anniversary milestones and is expected to be completed by 2026. Alongside the expansion, BFPL has rolled out a new juice brand for children, Tamtam, available in pineapple, orange, and mixed fruit flavors, to cater to shifting consumer preferences.
Farmers at heart of Bakhresa growth
Hussein Sufian, a senior company official, highlighted the company’s strong ties to the local agricultural sector, explaining that BFPL sources fruit from nearly 100,000 farmers through cooperatives. “We have a clear policy of using local raw materials,” he said. “We encourage farmers to grow the right varieties and meet the necessary quality standards.”
BFPL's Quality Officer, Charles Haiyola, said the new machinery has helped resolve previous production limitations. “We used to produce around 150,000 to 200,000 cartons daily. With the new equipment, we’re now hitting between 250,000 and 300,000 cartons,” he said.
Simon Alando, head of packaging and transport, added that Bakhresa’s products continue to find new markets abroad. “We’re exporting across East and Central Africa and have recently shipped to Yemen and Oman. Our reach keeps growing,” he said.
Bakhresa champions local food industry
Said Bakhresa, whose net worth was estimated at over $600 million in 2015, is ranked among Tanzania’s wealthiest, alongside Mohammed Dewji and Rostam Aziz. His Bakhresa Group has a wide footprint across industries, from food and beverages to logistics, agro-processing, media, hospitality, and marine services.
The new soft drinks project builds on other recent investments by the group. In June 2022, Bakhresa commissioned a $300 million sugar plant under Bagamoyo Sugar Limited, with plans to increase its production from 30,000 tonnes to 100,000 tonnes annually as part of a phased rollout. Then in December 2024, BFPL announced an additional Tsh20 billion ($8.4 million) expansion at the Mwandege site, doubling its annual fruit juice output from 45,000 to 100,000 tonnes to meet rising demand at home and abroad.
