Ellen Mlambo

Mirror Reporter

Harare – Tongaat Hulett Zimbabwe Operations held an inaugural breakfast meeting for national and foreign editors at Meikles Hotel in Harare today where top executives including Hippo Valley Estates Board chairman Canaan Dube discussed various issues affecting the sugar industry.

Dube emphasized the important role played by the media in society, adding that henceforth Hippo Valley will make the Editors’ Breakfast Meeting an annual event in addition to various other engagements that the company will hold with journalists.

“You can tell the state of a company’s governance as well as its commitment to engagement and economic and social development by looking at whether it respects the Media,” said Dube.

The meeting was attended by editors from both local and international media.

Also attending the meeting were Hippo Valley Estates and Triangle Operations MD/CEO, Aiden Mhere, Head Corporate and Industry Affairs Team Dr Dahlia Garwe and Hippo Valley Estates Board member Nyasha Mangwiza.

He gave highlights to the editors on the shareholding of the company, its wide range of products including sugar, ethanol and other downstream products. He also highlighted the market share including the fact that its sugar is sold locally and also earns significant foreign currency from exports including in Botswana where Zimbabwe is the biggest supplier.

He noted the progress that the company is making at the US$50 million Project Kilimanjaro where an additional 3 300 hectares of land are being cleared for sugarcane growing. Some 1 931 hectares of that have already been cleared, he said.

Some US$5,2 million which is 50% of the cost of developing Pezulu Project has been secured with a bank, said Dube.

Revenue for the year ending March 2022 shot up by 76% to ZWL$22,7 billion while operating profit improved by 62% to ZWL$10 billion. An interim dividend of ZWL108 cents was paid, said Dube.