Norfund Announces Its Investment In South African Start-Up ‘Redsun Dried Fruits & Nuts’
Norfund Announces Its Investment In South African Start-Up ‘Redsun Dried Fruits & Nuts’.Norfund, the Norwegian Investment Fund has announced a $8 million USD equity investment in Redsun Dried Fruits & Nuts, this investment seeks to expand raisin and pecan processing in the southern hemisphere and it is expected to add over 200 new jobs to the 163 existing positions.
Established in 2009, Redsun is based in Keimoes (Northern Cape), the region in South Africa where approximately 90% of the country’s raisins are produced. The company is at an advantage at a key juncture in the international raisin and pecan industry, as the US production level is shrinking, but demand is growing worldwide. Norfund’s investment expected to sustain 163 direct jobs, and create more than 200 new permanent jobs and support more than 6,000 indirect jobs by investing in a rural part of South Africa where manufacturing job opportunities are scarce.
Norfund’s investment will fund new pecan wet cracking and raisin processing facilities. With the introduction of the latest technology, Redsun will continue to be at the forefront of production. This will be one of the first wet cracking facilities in the southern hemisphere, leading to increased processing and new jobs. The investment will also enable Redsun to build the first raisin processing facility in the Olifantsriver region (Vredendal) of South Africa. Wet cracking technology has been used for more than 10 years in the US and provides higher yields than the current dry cracking technology used in South Africa. South Africa is the third largest producer of pecans in the world; however, it does not have a major pecan wet cracking facility operating in the country, which is due to the pecan production historically being too little to be financially viable for wet ccracking.
Project manager André Kemp said in a statement, “This investment in Redsun fulfills our mandate by creating jobs and increasing value in the company. It is also in line with our strategy to create jobs by processing agriculture locally. The new pecan wet cracking facility and raisin processing facilities are going to be instrumental for the company and the region. We are excited to partner with an experienced management team and to benefit from 1K1V’s access to Three-Dimensional Capital.”
