Eastern Cape Dairy announces R 70 million joint venture with global giant Schreiber

PRESS RELEASE

23 July 2020

East London based Sundale Dairy is set to break ground at the East London Industrial Development Zone (ELIDZ) in August as they launch Sundale Schreiber, a joint venture that is set to create 100 new jobs and stimulate local economic development.

The new Sundale Schreiber JV will develop processed cheese for quick-serve restaurants. At present, 70% of slice on slice (SOS) cheese slices in South Africa are imported. Sundale currently supply Burger King and McDonalds South Africa with imported cheese slices but once the new facility is up and running, these will be replaced with local content.

Sundale Dairy CEO, Pierre van Rensburg, said “the negotiations have been underway for three years and we now eagerly await the manifestation of this iconic partnership that is a value-add solution for the local economy. Our shared vision to deliver exceptional quality, service and innovation and our commitment to sustainability underpins our strategy to deliver 7 000 tonnes of cheese slices to the African market per annum.”

Schreiber is an international leader in processed cheeses and in 2019 celebrated 50 years of supplying Big Mac with cheese slices. The key for McDonalds is this functionality that allows the cheese slice to stick to the patty and bun. According to Van Rensburg, “the end-product is preservative free, contains natural dairy proteins and fats and offers excellent functionality which results in consistency in colour and cut of the slices, making it ideal for the quick-serve sector.” 

This latest venture is part of Sundale’s aggressive growth strategy and complements Sundale’s continuous investment in their expanding cheese business. In 2018, Sundale joined forces with Just Milk to buy the old Dairybelle Cheese factory in Cookhouse, a R 20 million investment, and in August 2019 invested another R 10 million to open a cheese factory in Braelyn, where they process 200 tonnes of cheese per month into fixed weight sizes. Sundale is a market leader in the Eastern Cape in cheese, cream and butter categories.

The partnership with Schreiber creates opportunities for skilled labour in the Eastern Cape for food technologists, process engineers and technicians and is a welcome boost for the sector that relies on export opportunities for sustainability.

Press Release prepared by La-Mont.

For more information contact Lynette Howe on lynette@la-mont.com or contact her on 083 443 8100.