DRC – GoCongo Holding SARL, an agri-food company based in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), has finalized the acquisition of livestock farm, Pastorale du Haut-Lomami (PHL), for an undisclosed amount.

Pastorale du Haut-Lomami, deemed to the second largest player in the livestock sector in the Grand-Katanga region, has a cattle herd of 24,000 heads on an area of ​​250,000 hectares.

The acquisition according to Agence Ecofin, will more than double GoCongo’s cattle herd to nearly 56,000 heads on a total territory of 73,000 hectares.

This will enable the agri-food company have ample livestock to strengthen the beef value chain in the country

It also intends to increase the average annual number of calves to 15,000 over the next three years against 8,000 currently, to accelerate the renewal of its herd. 

“We believe that the local food industry has enormous potential for growth, and we will systematically identify and develop vertically integrated food companies, in order to provide alternatives to the unacceptable levels of imported products that our country should and could produce locally,” said George Forrest, Chairman of the GoCongo Board of Directors.

With a population of close to 90 million people, the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), which is the largest country in sub-Saharan Africa, boasts 90 million hectares of pasture that can support 40 million heads of cattle and produce 1.5 million tonnes of beef per year.

But the country’s immense livestock production potential remains under exploited because of among other challenges, lack of high-quality fodder for livestock.

The DRC produces only 2.3% of its national potential in beef and imports 200,000 tons of meat annually to meet demand.

GALVmed and Elanco to manage ticks and tick-borne diseases in Africa

In other related news, the Global Alliance for Livestock Veterinary Medicines (GALVmed) has partnered with Elanco Animal Health to launch a new initiative to manage ticks and tick-borne diseases in Africa.

MAHABA (Managing Animal Health and Acaricides for a Better Africa) aims to support small-scale producers in Nigeria and Uganda by defining and implementing strategies to effectively control tick infestations in cattle.

Elanco brings a comprehensive acaricide portfolio in affordable small pack sizes together with expertise on tick control to local livestock producers.

Additionally, Elanco commits to bringing its comprehensive product portfolio for cattle and poultry to Nigeria, opening a new market for the company.

GALVmed on the other hand, will leverage its practical knowledge and understanding of the small-scale livestock producer sector to contribute to the initiative’s outcome of increasing uptake of improved products, services and practices by small-scale producers.

“We are excited to collaborate with Elanco to enable access and proper use of high-quality acaricides and innovative tools that empower small-scale producers to successfully tackle the impact of ticks as well as prevent tick-borne diseases.

“This will help farmers raise healthier animals, grow their farms’ efficiency and output and eventually allows them to make better returns on their investments,” said Carolin Schumacher, GALVmed’s Chief Executive Officer.

Building on the success of Elanco’s first shared value initiative in East Africa, East Africa Growth Accelerator, the new initiative will provide local cattle farmers with innovative solutions that help address current acaricide resistance issues. The initiative is supported by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.

Liked this article? Subscribe to Food Business Africa News, our regular email newsletters with the latest news insights from Africa and the World’s food and agro industry. SUBSCRIBE HERE