Judith Phiri, Business Reporter
FARMERS and the leather sector have called for the setting up of a tallow manufacturing plant in the country as it is critical in the leather sector value chain and import substitution.
Tallow is a fat that comes from ruminant animals, such as cows, sheep and goats. It is used in many products, including for cooking, making candles, soaps, skincare products, lubricants and biodiesel. A tallow manufacturing plant, also known as a rendering plant, separates and processes animal fat into tallow.
Zimbabwe has had to import tallow and gelatin, a protein made from animal collagen, usually from cows and pigs, for years for production of various products.
tallow
Speaking in a panel discussion on business and entrepreneurship opportunities in the leather value chain, Bata Zimbabwe Tannery manager, Mr Joseph Muzvondiwa who was representing hides and skins merchants said there was a gap that needed to be filled in the leather value chain.
“On the issue of tallow and gelatin, there is a big opportunity there, particularly on the hides. We are lagging behind because we do not even have a tallow or gelatin manufacturing plant in the country.
“Gelatin is a cash cow, l know of a plant in South Africa which has got a gelatin plant and a tannery. The gelatin plant is actually supporting the tannery because it is a huge cash cow,” he said.
He said the tanneries in Zimbabwe were capable of producing by-products from the slaughtered animals such as bones, cartilage and skin required for the production of gelatin.
Mr Muzvondiwa said this did not require a lot of chemicals, which was a viable opportunity that could be tapped into by setting up a manufacturing plant in the country.
He added: “Another thing that needs to be addressed is the issue of chemicals used in the leather sector. We used to have local manufacturers, but now we have to import them. We need to revive local production of these chemicals.”
gelatin
A cow has 16 by-products of which one of the critical by-products from cattle that companies in the soap manufacturing sector are importing at the moment is tallow.
Years back at its peak the Cold Storage Company (CSC) would produce tallow that was sustainable to the local market.
The local market would not import tallow and gelatin during that time, reducing Zimbabwe’s tallow import bill in terms of foreign currency.
Meanwhile, representing the tanners, Ms Tatenda Katai, the production manager at Prestige Leather Tanneries, said tanneries in the country were willing to move with the current trends and become compliant with environmental, social and governance (ESG) framework, but the quality of skin hides they were getting were affecting their business.
“The other weakness that we have is the inferior quality of hides that we are getting. We have pre and post-slaughter defects that are affecting the hides that we are using,” she said.
Ms Tatenda Katai
“We might want to shift the blame to the farmers but in all fairness they are not getting value for their money. As tanners are we able to offer value for the money at the moment? Not really.”
She said hides’ traceability was an opportunity that could be tapped into and was very pertinent in the leather value chain.
Ms Katai said the leather sector was in need of working capital and the banking sector should try to be more cooperative in terms of interest rates they offer for the sector.
The event was hosted by the Confederation of Zimbabwe Industries (CZI) as a seminar on curating business and market opportunities in the leather value chain.
Zimbabwe’s leather sector is undergoing revival as it is a source of income for the country, and has the potential to contribute to sustainable development.
