Project SunRise Oils — Strategy & Business Model
The strategic intent and strategic pillars, the sunflower value chain, the business-model canvas, the revenue model and the go-to-market strategy.
Section 6 · Business Plan
Strategy & Business Model
The strategic intent and strategic pillars, the sunflower value chain, the business-model canvas, the revenue model and the go-to-market strategy.
6.1 Strategic Intent
By 2031, Project SunRise Oils intends to be one of the top-three
sunflower oil producers in South Africa by combined crushing, refining,
and bottling output, with a recognised mid-tier consumer brand, an
active regional export footprint into at least four SADC countries, and
a portfolio of supply contracts with the country’s leading FMCG
manufacturers and retailers.
6.2 Strategic Pillars
| Strategic pillar | Description |
|---|---|
| Vertical integration | Operate from farmer offtake through crushing, refining, bottling, and animal-feed by-product. Capture margin at every stage of the value chain rather than ceding it to intermediaries. |
| Anchor in the producing region | Site operations within 200 km of more than 65% of national sunflower seed production, dramatically reducing inbound logistics cost and ensuring crop availability through the harvest window. |
| Quality leadership | Maintain FSSC 22000 certification, ISO 9001 alignment, full digital traceability, and best-in-class CCP architecture. Be the supplier of choice for retailer house brands and global FMCG buyers. |
| Operational excellence | Drive energy intensity below 250 kWh/MT, water use below 0.8 kL/MT, and downtime below 3% — all at-or-better than the sector benchmark. Win on cost-to-serve. |
| Brand & channel diversification | Build a recognisable mid-tier consumer brand while protecting B2B and export channels. No customer concentration above 18% of revenue. |
| Sustainable growth | Invest in 8 MW on-site solar, water recycling, and carbon-emission reduction. Build a B-BBEE Level 2 contributor profile by Year 5. Embed ESG into governance. |
6.3 Sunflower Value Chain
The Company is positioned across the full chain. Each stage
represents a distinct margin pool — and a distinct operational
discipline — that integrates with the others to deliver the product
economics outlined in Section 4.
6.4 Business Model Canvas
| Key Partners • Sunflower farmers (Free State, North West, Limpopo) • Seed companies (Pannar, Pioneer, Agricol) • Equipment OEMs (Crown Iron Works, De Smet) • Banks & DFIs (commercial, IDC, Land Bank) • Certification bodies (FSSC, SABS) • Logistics partners (Imperial, Transnet, road haulage) | Key Activities • Sunflower seed procurement • Crushing & solvent extraction • Refining (NBD) • Bottling & packaging • Quality assurance & laboratory • B2B and B2C sales & distribution • Farmer support & contracting | Value Propositions • Locally produced edible oil at competitive price points • Fully traceable, FSSC 22000 certified product • Reliable supply to FMCG and retail customers • Fair, contracted prices to farmers • High-protein oilcake for the feed industry • Regional SADC export reliability |
|---|---|---|
| Key Resources • 300 kt/yr crushing capacity • Refining & bottling plant • Silo storage 60 kt • 8 MW solar PV array • FSSC 22000 certification • Laboratory & QA infrastructure • Farmer offtake network • Logistics fleet & 3PL partnerships | Customer Relationships • Long-term retailer & FMCG contracts • Dedicated KAM teams • Farmer offtake relationship • Distributor partnerships in SADC • Digital channels for B2C engagement • Food safety & technical support | Channels • National retail chains • Wholesale & cash-and-carry • Direct industrial / FMCG sales • Food-service distribution • SADC export partners • Direct digital / e-commerce |
| Cost Structure • Sunflower seed procurement (≈ 65% of COGS) • Energy & utilities • Labour • Logistics & freight • Packaging materials • Marketing & sales • Finance costs • Maintenance & spares | Customer Segments • Mass-market households (LSM 4–8) • Middle-class households (LSM 8–10) • FMCG manufacturers (snacks, RTE meals) • Food-service & HORECA • Animal-feed manufacturers • SADC distributors / wholesalers | Revenue Streams • Refined & bottled oil — B2C (40%) • Crude oil — B2B (37%) • Sunflower oilcake (22%) • Tolling & co-pack (1%) • Government incentives (modest) • Carbon credits (long-term) |
6.5 Revenue Model
The Company operates four distinct revenue streams, each with its own
pricing logic, customer base, and margin profile. The deliberate
diversification across streams is a key risk-management feature of the
model — under no scenario does any single stream account for more than
50% of revenue, ensuring that volatility in any one segment does not
destabilise the consolidated business.
| Revenue stream | Y5 share | Pricing basis | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Refined & bottled oil (B2C) | 40% | Shelf price – retailer margin | Mid-tier branded + retailer house brands |
| Crude oil (B2B) | 37% | Import parity + freight | FMCG manufacturers, food-service |
| Sunflower oilcake | 22% | SAFEX / soybean meal correlation | Animal feed manufacturers |
| Tolling / co-pack services | 1% | Cost-plus margin | Optional, capacity utilisation enhancer |
6.6 Go-to-Market Strategy
The go-to-market plan unfolds in three sequenced waves. Wave 1
(Months 1–12 of operation post-commissioning) focuses on existing
crude-oil customers and retailer house-brand contracts that can be
activated quickly with the new capacity. Wave 2 (Months 13–24)
introduces the Company’s own mid-tier branded retail product across the
major chains, supported by a focused trade-marketing programme. Wave 3
(Months 25–36) activates SADC export markets, beginning with Botswana,
Zimbabwe and Namibia.
Marketing Investment Plan
| Lever | Y1 Spend | Y3 Spend | Approach |
|---|---|---|---|
| Brand building & advertising | R8M | R28M | Above-the-line on health-positioning |
| Trade marketing & shopper activation | R12M | R32M | Retailer co-funded promotions, demos |
| Digital & social | R3M | R12M | Recipe content, influencer, paid digital |
| Sales force & key accounts | R9M | R22M | Dedicated KAM, food-service team |
| Export market entry | — | R15M | Distributor recruitment, regulatory |
| Total marketing spend | R32M | R109M | ≈ 5.6% / 8.3% of revenue |
Confidential — this business plan is provided to prospective investors and lenders for evaluation purposes only and may not be reproduced or distributed without the written consent of Project SunRise Oils (Pty) Ltd.