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Tanzanian billionaire Said Bakhresa is putting $500 million into expanding his flagship soft-drink factory, doubling capacity as he targets fast-growing beverage demand across East and Central Africa.
According to a news report by The Citizen, The plant in Mwandege, about 50 kilometers south of Dar es Salaam, will boost daily production to 300,000 cartons from 150,000 once the project wraps up in 2026. The expansion covers 17 hectares and includes new juice lines, such as the children’s brand Tamtam, in pineapple, orange and mixed-fruit flavors.
“We have a clear policy of using local raw materials,” Hussein Sufian, the Bakhresa Group’s public-relations chief, said in an interview with The Citizen. The company sources from nearly 100,000 farmers through cooperatives, offering guidance on crop quality and varieties to meet processing standards.
The group has already installed equipment that lifted output to 250,000–300,000 cartons a day, up from 150,000–200,000.
Bakhresa, whose interests span food, logistics, hospitality, marine services and media, is ranked among Tanzania’s wealthiest entrepreneurs alongside Mohammed Dewji and Rostam Aziz. His net worth exceeds $1-billion according to Billionaires.Africa's estimates.
The investment follows other major bets. In 2022, the group commissioned a $300 million sugar plant under Bagamoyo Sugar Ltd., aiming to more than triple annual output to 100,000 tonnes. Last December, it announced an 8.4-million-dollar upgrade to double fruit-juice production at Mwandege to 100,000 tonnes a year.
