StratDairy Foods — Operational Plan
The production facility will be located in the Willowton Industrial Park precinct of Pietermaritzburg, KwaZulu-Natal. This location was selected following a rigorous site-selection process that evaluated 12 candidate locations across four provinces against weighted criteria including proximity to raw milk supply, distribution…
Section 4 · Business Plan
Operational Plan
The production facility will be located in the Willowton Industrial Park precinct of Pietermaritzburg, KwaZulu-Natal. This location was selected following a rigorous site-selection process that evaluated 12 candidate locations across four provinces against weighted criteria including proximity to raw milk supply, distribution…
A yogurt processing facility designed to scale to 20 million litres per annum within five years.
4.1 Facility Location – Pietermaritzburg, KZN
The production facility will be located in the Willowton Industrial Park precinct of Pietermaritzburg, KwaZulu-Natal. This location was selected following a rigorous site-selection process that evaluated 12 candidate locations across four provinces against weighted criteria including proximity to raw milk supply, distribution logistics, utility costs, labour availability, and industrial property rates.
| Selection Criterion | Pietermaritzburg Advantage | Weight |
|---|---|---|
| Milk Supply Proximity | Within 80km of 40+ commercial dairy farms in KZN Midlands | 25% |
| Distribution Access | N3 corridor to Durban port and Gauteng; N2 coastal route | 25% |
| Property Costs | 40–55% lower industrial rental vs. Gauteng and Durban CBD | 20% |
| Labour Availability | Large semi-skilled labour pool; proximity to DUT and UKZN | 15% |
| Utility Infrastructure | Reliable municipal water; Eskom grid with solar feasibility | 15% |
4.2 Production Capacity & Technology
The plant is designed for an initial production capacity of 10 million litres per annum across all product lines, with physical infrastructure sized to accommodate expansion to 20 million litres through the addition of a second processing line in Year 4 or Year 5. Key technical specifications include:
incorporating pasteurisation, homogenisation, fermentation (controlled
culture inoculation), cooling, and aseptic filling. Equipment sourced
from Tetra Pak (Sweden) and GEA Group (Germany), both recognised leaders
in dairy processing technology.
maintaining 2–4°C, equipped with redundant refrigeration units and
72-hour backup power via diesel generators and battery systems.
laboratory for real-time quality testing, including HACCP-compliant
monitoring at all critical control points. The facility will pursue ISO
22000 (Food Safety Management) and FSSC 22000 certification within 12
months of commissioning.
4.3 Supply Chain Architecture
StratDairy’s supply chain is designed for resilience, cost efficiency, and full traceability from farm to shelf:
agreements with 30+ commercial dairy farmers in the KZN Midlands.
Contracts include price-floor mechanisms linked to the Milk Producers’
Organisation (MPO) benchmark, providing input cost predictability. A
secondary supply arrangement with a national dairy cooperative provides
overflow capacity during demand peaks.
PET cups and foil-sealed lids sourced from Nampak and Mpact, South
Africa’s leading packaging manufacturers. Outer packaging utilises
corrugated board from Sappi. The Company is committed to achieving 80%
packaging recyclability by Year 3.
direct delivery to national retail chain distribution centres (Shoprite,
Pick n Pay, SPAR, Woolworths) with third-party cold-chain logistics
partners (Vector Logistics, Imperial Cold Logistics) for independent
retailer and foodservice delivery.
4.4 Human Capital Plan
StratDairy’s staffing plan projects headcount growth from 45 full-time equivalents at launch to 135 FTEs by Year 5. The Company will invest significantly in workforce development, allocating 2.5% of annual payroll to skills training in line with the Manufacturing, Engineering and Related Services SETA (merSETA) requirements.
| Department | Year 1 | Year 2 | Year 3 | Year 4 | Year 5 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Production & QA | 22 | 30 | 42 | 55 | 68 |
| Supply Chain & Logistics | 8 | 12 | 16 | 20 | 24 |
| Sales & Marketing | 6 | 8 | 12 | 16 | 20 |
| Finance & Administration | 5 | 6 | 8 | 10 | 12 |
| Executive & Management | 4 | 6 | 7 | 9 | 11 |
| Total FTEs | 45 | 62 | 85 | 110 | 135 |
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