Africa’s modern food economy was not built overnight. Long before consumer brands, private equity, and supermarket dominance, a handful of food companies laid the industrial foundations that still feed millions today.
These firms survived colonial transitions, currency crises, wars, inflationary cycles, and shifting consumer habits, emerging as national champions embedded in everyday diets.
From grain millers and brewers to meat processors and beverage giants, Africa’s oldest food companies did more than manufacture products.
They shaped farming ecosystems, created industrial jobs, anchored export revenues, and influenced food culture across generations.
Their endurance reflects a rare combination of capital discipline, operational scale, and the ability to adapt to political and economic upheaval.
Many of these firms predate independence, yet remain relevant by modernizing supply chains, supporting local farmers, and expanding into new product categories. Others have evolved into strategic assets, either state-backed, publicly listed, or absorbed into global food empires, while still retaining strong domestic identities.
Together, these companies profiled by Shore Africa tell a deeper story: how food became one of Africa’s most resilient industries, and how long-term value creation, rather than fast growth, has produced some of the continent’s most enduring corporate institutions.
1. Premier FMCG
Country: South Africa
Year: 1824
Premier (formerly Premier Milling) is recognized as one of Africa’s oldest food giants, founded in 1824 as a bakery. Based in South Africa, it has operated for over 200 years and owns iconic brands such as Mister Sweet, Iwisa, and Blue Ribbon, producing staple foods and consumer goods across the region.
2. National Foods
Country: Zimbabwe
National Foods is widely recognized as Zimbabwe’s oldest and largest food manufacturer, with a history stretching back to its corporate establishment in 1920. It produces staple foods like maize meal, flour, and cooking oil, and celebrated 100 years of feeding the nation in 2020. The company is jointly owned by Innscor Africa Limited and Tiger Brands. With roots stretching back more than 100 years, National Foods is Zimbabwe’s dominant grain processor. Its maize meal, flour, and cooking oil brands support thousands of farmers and remain critical to the country’s agricultural and consumer food ecosystem.
3. Al Ahram Beverages
Country: Egypt
a subsidiary of the Heineken Group, is Egypt’s oldest and largest beverages company, established in 1897. It produces and distributes a wide range of alcoholic and non-alcoholic malt beverages, including iconic brands like Heineken, Stella, Fayrouz, and Birell. Al Ahram Beverages dominates Egypt’s beer market. Its flagship Stella brand is culturally iconic, making the company one of North Africa’s most enduring and influential beverage producers.
4. Namibia Breweries Limited
Country: Namibia
Namibia Breweries Limited (NBL), founded in 1920, is a leading beverage manufacturing company based in Windhoek, Namibia, and is one of the few independently operated commercial-scale breweries in southern Africa. Owned by Heineken Beverages since 2023, NBL produces iconic brands like Windhoek Lager, Tafel Lager, and Hansa Pilsener, brewing in accordance with the German Reinheitsgebot purity law. Operating for over a century, Namibia Breweries built a reputation for quality beer under brands like Windhoek and Tafel. The company has steadily diversified into non-alcoholic beverages while maintaining export strength.
5. SFBT – Société Frigorifique et Brasserie de Tunis
Country: Tunisia
Société de Fabrication des Boissons de Tunisie (SFBT), commonly known as the Tunisian Beverage Manufacturing Company, is one of the oldest and most established food and beverage manufacturing entities in Tunisia, founded in 1889.
6. Sugar Corporation of Uganda Limited (SCOUL)
Country: Uganda
Sugar Corporation of Uganda Limited (SCOUL) is a premier, vertically integrated agro-industrial company which was established in 1924 by Nanji Kalidas Mehta and based in Lugazi. As the third-largest sugar manufacturer in Uganda (producing about 60,000–100,000 tonnes annually), it is owned by the Mehta Group and the Ugandan government. SCOUL operates over 30,000 acres of cane plantations, supports thousands of outgrowers, and produces sugar, ethanol, and electricity.
7. Awash Wine Share Company
Country: Ethiopia
Awash Wine Share Company is Ethiopia’s oldest and leading wine producer, established in 1936, commanding roughly 90% of the local wine market. Based in Addis Ababa with vineyards in Merti Jeju and wineries in Lideta and Mekanisa, it produces well-known brands like Gouder, Axumit, and Kemila. Established more than 70 years ago, Awash Wine helped define Ethiopia’s modern wine industry. Its brands, Awash and Kemila, are deeply embedded in national celebrations and social life.
8. Botswana Meat Commission
Country: Botswana
The Botswana Meat Commission (BMC) is a state-owned enterprise established in 1965 to procure, slaughter, process, and export beef and by-products from Botswana to international markets, notably the EU, South Africa, and the UK. Operating abattoirs in Lobatse, Francistown, and Maun, it serves as the primary, formerly monopoly, marketer for the country’s livestock industry.
9. Tanzania Breweries Limited
Country: Tanzania
Tanzania Breweries Limited (TBL Plc) is the oldest and largest alcoholic and non-alcoholic beverage company in Tanzania, established in 1933 and part of the Anheuser-Busch InBev (AB InBev) group. It dominates the Tanzanian market, with over 70% share, operating breweries in Dar es Salaam, Arusha, Mwanza, and Mbeya. Approaching 90 years in operation, Tanzania Breweries produces nationally celebrated brands like Kilimanjaro Lager, anchoring the country’s formal beverage manufacturing sector.
10. Nestlé South Africa
Country: South Africa
Nestlé South Africa is the East and Southern African regional head office and a major subsidiary of the Swiss-based multinational food and beverage company. Operating since 1916, it is a leading manufacturer of iconic products like RICOFFY, CREMORA, and MAGGI, employing over 3,000 people across 5 factories and 2 distribution centers. Active in South Africa since the early 20th century, Nestlé’s local operations produce dairy, cereals, and beverages, making it one of the most enduring multinational food investors on the continent.
