GBfoods, Africa’s major player in culinary solutions and producer of tasty, nutritious and healthy brands like Gino, Pomo, Bama, Jumbo and Jago, has marked a significant milestone with the celebration of its 50th anniversary in Africa.
The celebration was held in Accra and showcased Gbfoods’ deep-rooted commitment to the continent, its communities and its sustainable growth.
In his welcome remarks, Vicenc Bosch, CEO Africa-GBfoods, noted that when GBfoods started operations in Africa, the goal was to establish more than just a business – it was about making a positive impact on communities across the continent. Fifty years on, GBfoods has lived this ethos by playing an impactful role in creating jobs, fostering growth and uplifting lives in the continent.
As the brand looks on to the next fifty years, Vicenc Bosch highlighted the company’s commitment to being the best place to work – emphasising the importance of “doing the right things” for the continent’s development and achieving success.
“As we look into the next 50 years, we have extended our vision toward sustainability, with a particular emphasis on creating nutritious and healthful foods rooted in local flavours. We are dedicated to enhancing the availability of essential micronutrients and addressing childhood stunting, thereby contributing to a healthier future for African nations. In addition to our environmental efforts, we are actively reducing our carbon footprint; exemplified by the adoption of solar power in our Tema factory. We are also steadfast in our commitment to ensuring equitable treatment and development opportunities for communities and stakeholders,” he added.
On his part, Ignasi Ricou, Global CEO-GBfoods, stressed the importance of becoming more locally relevant and investing in backward integration. He said: “Throughout our journey, we’ve achieved numerous significant milestones; each contributing to our strong presence in Africa. Notably, a key achievement has been our commitment to sourcing more inputs locally. This effort is exemplified by our backward integration project focused on tomatoes, wherein we established the largest integrated tomato farm and fresh tomato processing factory on approximately 4,000 acres in Kebbi State, Nigeria. We’ve also initiated a similar venture in Ghana at the Afram Plains, aligning with a promise made to President Nana Akufo-Addo during the inauguration of our factory expansion earlier this year.
“Having proudly served for five decades, our unwavering faith in Africa assures us that we will continue to thrive in this dynamic continent for another half-century and beyond. We have complete confidence in the commitment of our shareholders, the strength of our dedicated team, the availability of essential resources and the clarity of our vision, which will undoubtedly empower us to overcome any future challenges we may encounter in our African journey,” he added.
As GBFoods celebrates its 50th anniversary, it’s clear that the company’s mission is far from over. The next fifty-years promises to be an even more impactful chapter in GBFoods’ journey as it continues to create lasting prosperity and food security in Africa.
