New tapioca factory to be built in Attapeu
New tapioca factory to be built in Attapeu
The Yen Binh Agricultural Development Sole Company Limited has received approval to build a cassava processing plant in Saysy village, Samakhixay district, Attapeu province.
Construction of the factory, which will have the capacity to produce 300 tonnes of tapioca per day, will start early next year and should be ready to start operations at the end of 2016. It is expected to operate for 9-10 months a year.
According to the company, more than 50 billion kip (US$6 million) will be invested in the facility. The company will follow international standards to ensure the quality production of high grade tapioca.
Yen Binh has also three operating factories in northern Vietnam financed almost entirely with equity, and all operating at a profit. Part of the success is due to Yen Binh always treating farmers fairly and paying cash for the cassava they supply. The experience gained from these other factories will help to solve challenges during construction and operation.
The company will provide about 250 new jobs. It will also create new stable earning opportunities for about 3,000 local farming families who will farm 7,000 hectares of cassava. If farmers supply more cassava than the first stage capacity of 300 tonnes, then Yen Binh plans to extend capacity to ensure all the available cassava is used.
In addition to the cassava supplied by local farmers, the factory has its own small plantation area. The main idea of this plantation is to extend the operating period of the factory up to nine months a year as most of the farmers want to sell their cassava during the peak season.
The factory will also provide strong social benefits for local people, for instance the company will finance the building of three new schools.
The company is also looking at the possibility of building or buying a new factory close to Vientiane as there is a lot of cassava available for a tapioca factory of similar capacity, as there are no operating factories in the area at present.
