TIDMAGTA
RNS Number : 3896O
Agriterra Ltd
19 September 2013
Agriterra Ltd / Ticker: AGTA / Index: AIM / Sector:
Agriculture
19 September 2013
Agriterra Ltd ('Agriterra' or the 'Group')
Expansion and Development of Cocoa Plantation & Cocoa
Trading Update
Agriterra Ltd, the AIM listed pan African agricultural company,
is pleased to provide an update on the rapid development and
expansion of its cocoa farming and trading operations in Sierra
Leone, through its wholly owned subsidiary Tropical Farms Ltd
('TFL'), in line with Agriterra's strategy to build a vertically
integrated pan-African agricultural group.
Plantation - accelerated development to achieve large scale
commercial production
-- Expansion of cocoa plantation located 35km south-east of
Kenema through acquisition of adjacent 1,600 hectares of land
suitable for cocoa production
-- Total plantation now 3,200 hectares - further progressing
strategy of initiating large scale commercial cocoa production
-- 250,000 seedlings cultivated in TFL's 1.6 hectare
fully-irrigated nursery now planted on 200 hectares of cleared
land
-- 1,000 additional hectares of land to be cleared ahead of 2014
planting season - in excess of 750 hectares are expected to be
planted by Q3 2014
-- New nursery ordered that will expand nursery coverage to 2.2
hectares with capacity for up to 1 million seedlings with full
irrigation
-- Construction of administration offices and accommodation well
progressed on plantation site - targeted for completion in December
2013
-- Infrastructure development programme in place for 2014 to
further improve plantation infrastructure and access to Kenema,
including roads and bridges
-- Negotiations advancing regarding the acquisition of a further
1,550 hectares adjacent to and south of the plantation
Cocoa trading - expanding buying capacity and securing supply
& off-take
-- Buying infrastructure expanded through two new stores in Kono
and Kailahun, in the Eastern Province of Sierra Leone
-- Support infrastructure and logistics chain will be
significantly strengthened through 2,000m(2) warehouse and
processing facility in Kenema, the centre of the cocoa growing
industry in Sierra Leone
-- Warehouse and processing facility expected to be operational in November 2013
-- New off-take agreements secured with Noble Group Limited, a
market-leading global supply chain manager of agricultural
products
-- Appraisal underway for UTZ and Rainforest Alliance certification
Andrew Groves, Agriterra Chief Executive said, "The accelerated
development strategy that we have implemented at our 3,200 hectare
plantation is designed to maximise revenue generation from early
production. As we continue cocoa planting across the rest of our
property over the next two years, our status as a premier Sierra
Leonean cocoa trading company will be further enhanced by the
important advances that our buying operation achieves, through the
expansion of our buying capacity, storage facilities and logistics
chain.
"In addition, we have formed important relationships with major
international cocoa trading and buying companies, including Noble
Group, and I am confident this will give us a competitive advantage
as we begin to produce cocoa from our own plantation. We have built
a reputation for delivering high quality, traceable and ethically
produced cocoa, as evidenced by the current UTZ and Rainforest
Alliance certification appraisals, ensuring that we can command
attractive prices and forge long term sales agreements. This is of
particular importance considering the wider market for cocoa, where
cocoa shortages are expanding as chocolate sales climb to record
highs. With this backdrop of a favourable pricing environment for
cocoa, and a proven track record to deliver, I believe we are well
positioned to increase revenue generation and margins over the
coming years, as our own high quality product reaches the
market."
** ENDS **
For further information please visit www.agriterra-ltd.com or
contact:
Andrew Groves Agriterra Ltd Tel: +44 (0) 20 7408
9200
David Foreman Cantor Fitzgerald Europe Tel: +44 (0) 20 7894
7684
Rick Thompson Cantor Fitzgerald Europe Tel: +44 (0) 20 7894
7684
Andy Cuthill Peat & Co Tel: +44 (0) 20 3540
1722
John Beaumont Peat & Co. Tel: +44 (0) 20 3540
1723
Susie Geliher St Brides Media & Finance Tel: +44 (0) 20 7236
Ltd 1177
Notes
Agriterra Ltd is an AIM listed agricultural company with five
divisions: beef, maize, cocoa, fruit and palm oil. Its cattle
ranching business, Mozbife, has a herd in excess of 6,869 head, a
land holding of over 21,000 hectares, a feedlot, a 4,000 head per
month capacity abattoir and retail units. In addition to selling
meat from its own herds, throughput for the feedlot and abattoir is
supplemented with cattle bought in from local communities. The
Company also owns a proximal banana plantation and macadamia
orchard.
The Company's maize buying and milling operations, DECA and
Compagri, are located in Chimoio and Tete in central and
north-western Mozambique respectively. These collect maize from
circa 350,000 farmers using the Company's own vehicle fleet,
process it into maize meal, the African staple, and then sell it
back to the local market, into supermarkets and to the World Food
Programme.
Agriterra's cocoa business is based in Sierra Leone, through its
100% subsidiary Tropical Farms Limited ('TFL'), which includes
buying, trading and production operations. The Company holds over
3,200 hectares of plantation land for cocoa cultivation in addition
to a 2.2 hectare nursery, 35km south-east of Kenema. TFL also
operates a successful cocoa trading business with a strong buying
register of three main hub stores in Kenema, Kono and Kailahun, and
a direct buying register of more than 3,500 farmers across the
country. TFL are finalising the construction of a 2,000m(2)
warehouse and processing-to-export facility in Kenema, to further
strengthen the cocoa trading logistics chain, which they expect to
be operational in November 2013. Its strategy is to establish
itself as a secure, sustainable and traceable source of supply to
meet the requirements of the major cocoa consumers who are placing
increased emphasis in this area.
This information is provided by RNS
The company news service from the London Stock Exchange
END
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