However, the country has a large and growing refined sunflower oil industry that can substitute these imports. Sunflower oil comprises 83% of total edible oils produced in Tanzania but meets only 30% of demand. Sunflower farmer in Tanzania
How can Tanzania expand the edible oil industry?
Low smallholder participation in oil Source: Icons from Noun Project 4 In order to expand the edible oils industry, Tanzania should focus first on the sunflower value chain, as it is best positioned to serve strong demand given current production dynamics Source: IHS Markit; FAOSTAT; Dalberg analysis from calculations
Does Tanzania import cooking oil?
Given a shortfall of 360K metric tons, Tanzania imports over 60% of the country¡¯s cooking oil. This costs USD 250M in palm oil imports every year, making it the sector with the second highest foreign exchange transactions by value. However, the country has a large and growing refined sunflower oil industry that can substitute these imports.
Should SMEs invest in edible oils in Tanzania?
In particular, the team found that large Tanzanian companies are well positioned to make this investment; investors can source raw materials from local SMEs, which would experience higher productivity from rising demand. In late 2017, the USAID team designed a three-phase feasibility study for the edible oils sector.
