Togo installs US$251m soybean processing plants

TOGO – Construction work on the local soybean processing units installed on the Adétikopé Industrial Platform (PIA) which mobilized an investment of more than 165 billion FCFA (US$251 million) has been completed.

The construction of these processing units follows the signing of a contract between the PIA and Togo Agro Resources SAU, an agri-food company involved in the refining of soybeans.

According to the administrative authorities of the PIA, their commissioning “will allow the country to position itself as an exporter of soybean oil in the sub-region.”

With operations set to begin soon, according to the PIA, the new factories will make it possible to transform around 240,000 tonnes of 100% local soybeans per year.

The two factories, also equipped with refining units, will produce edible soybean oil, de-oil cakes, lecithin, soybean pieces, roasted soybeans and soybean meal.

The PIA indicates that “the production of soybean oil will replace the import of edible oils in the country,” and expects more than 350 jobs for the Togolese.

Commissioning of the facories will allow Togo to position itself as an exporter of soybean oil in the sub-region

Soybean cultivation has become profitable not only for soybean farmers, but also for other actors in the value chain. It is a cash crop (export-oriented crop) that is competitive with cotton, which is the leading cash crop in Togo. In 2020 it became the first exporter of organic soybean to the European Union, ahead of China and India.

This was unthinkable just five years ago. In 2015, the country produced less than 25,000 tons of soybeans. Since then, production increased five-fold to more than 200,000 tons in 2021. More importantly, the beans reached key markets in the Netherlands, Vietnam, the United States, and India.

This was made possible through careful nurturing of the entire soybean value chain by the Government of Togo, with support from the Enhanced Integrated Framework (EIF).

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