By Millicent Senava Mannah
The Sierra Leone Brewery Limited (SLBL) in engagement with newsmen at the Conference Room of its Wellington Industrial Estate, on the 20th July, 2023, to discuss their commitment to promoting local content and boosting the cultivation of sorghum. The company’s Corporate Affairs Manager, Foday Daboh, highlighted their efforts to encourage commercial farmers across the country to grow sorghum, which is a crucial ingredient in the production of certain beverages like beer and Maltina.
To achieve their goals, SLBL completed the Pre-Planting Sorghum Cultivation and Awareness Campaign across various districts in Sierra Leone. The campaign aimed to persuade more farmers to venture into sorghum cultivation by providing them with free seeds to incorporate into their plantations during the current planting season. This initiative is expected to increase the overall harvest of sorghum and meet the demand required for the brewery’s daily production processes.
Despite having around 5,000 farmers producing sorghum, Daboh expressed that the current quantity of sorghum received is insufficient to meet their production demand. To address this issue, the brewery has been purchasing sorghum from Europe, which is costlier compared to sourcing it locally. Therefore, SLBL urges local farmers to step up production, assuring them of a ready market and even offering incentives to purchase raw materials locally.
During the media engagement, Foday Daboh emphasized that SLBL supports farmers not only with seeds but also by providing transportation, expert agronomists, and advance payments to contracted farmers. The company aims to create a win-win situation for both SLBL and the local farmers while promoting Sierra Leone’s local content policy.
The waste from sorghum is also put to good use, as it can serve as fertilizer or feed for pigs, with SLBL ensuring that the waste is returned to the farmers. In a bid to further motivate farmers, SLBL increased the purchase price of sorghum from NLe300 to NLe350 per 50kg bag, making it more lucrative for them.
The press conference showcased SLBL’s dedication to supporting local farmers and enhancing Sierra Leone’s local content policy, ultimately contributing to job creation and sustainable livelihoods. They encourage more youths and women to participate in sorghum cultivation as a means of fostering development and prosperity in the country.
By paying for sorghum at brewery ,with the price of ,le 350n is still very small. Regarding the fact that sorghum and rice farming are almost the same. Infact it is even more difficult than rice farming,since it takes more months than rice,to be cultivated.I suggest,it has the same price rate as compared to rice. Or we will begin looking forward to export it. As i speak here,i have over four acres planted and i am looking to a company that can meet my demand.Thanks,Aloysious Elogima Seppeh.
The price for our sorghum product is still under sold Le 350n is very small. I have over 4acres planted but i am looking for a company who can buy for 1million or 8 hundred,to do business with or we begin looking for a foreign companies that will buy from us