Story by Tamuka Charakupa
ETHANOL producer GreenFuel has expanded its portfolio venturing into cattle and stock feeds production through value addition of sugar cane trash.
The effects of climate change through the recently experienced El-Nino season have posed dire food insecurity particularly on animals as grazing lands and water sources are drying at an alarming rate.
As part of its response to this situation, ethanol producer GreenFuel is now value-adding its sugarcane trash into producing stock feeds with at least 50 tonnes being produced daily.
“We felt the effect of the drought and we are in a fortunate position where we have a lot of the by- products from the sugar cane that we can use and the ethanol process that we also can use to make stock feed. We have now put up a demo temporary feed lot to test our feed and it mainly consists of sugar cane trash, sugarcane baggass, fibre and the feast femented from ethanol,” said GreenFuel, Managing Director, Mr Conrad Rautenbach.
The company is confident it will meet local demand with the production plant set be up and running by end of next month.
“For the moment we are just producing for our local consumption and for our sister company in Mwenezi but going forward we are capable of producing much more even for the local community. We also attracted investors who have invested in a feed plant which will be running shortly probably by end of July,” said GreenFuel, Production Nutritionist, Mr Godfrey Chatora.
Visiting the plant this Friday, the Minister of Lands, Agriculture, Fisheries, Water, and Rural Development Dr Anxious Masuka was impressed by the development which is set to compliment government efforts in responding to the effects of drought.
“My visit here to GreenFuel is to see the expanded production not just for ethanol, they are able to do molasis, able now to put in yeast and ultimately feed and here is their demo feed lot to show that they can contribute to the President ED Mnangagwa’s drought measures and strategies. I am impressed that they are able to provide this intervention at a critical phase in the development of this country,” he said.
The latest development is a milestone in line with government’s rural industrialisation drive.
The latest development is significant in government’s rural industrialisation drive.
Apart from ethanol production, GreenFuel is also supplying around 9 megawatts of electricity into the national grid.
