The Ministry of Agriculture has challenged the local baking community to abandon the kitchen enterprise mentality and aggressively claim its space in the mainstream retail market.
During the MTN SME Business Connect Session for bakers at Mountain View Hotel, Deputy Director and Home Economist Nikiwe Dlamini questioned the current state of the market, where imported goods continue to overshadow local talent despite the abundance of domestic skill.
Dlamini urged the sector to invade supermarkets and move away from the attitude of baking just for baking. “I hate it when I see those buckets of baked goods in these shops and they are not from Eswatini, but from South Africa, and I don’t know who baked them,” Dlamini said, pointing to the irony of the situation.
“We have so many bakers around the corner here in Eswatini. Where are you? Let us move from a kitchen enterprise into serious baking enterprises.”
Dlamini highlighted that the Ministry has long offered a suite of specialized services through the Department of Agriculture and Extension, yet these resources remain underutilized by the very people they are meant to assist.
“We have been available for a while; I just don’t know why people haven’t been utilizing our services,” she noted.
These services range from technical value addition training, which teaches bakers to incorporate local raw materials like sweet potato or cassava flour into their recipes, to essential guidance on meeting national nutrition and food safety standards.
However, the Deputy Director was quick to identify that the primary hurdle for local bakers isn’t just a lack of training, but a lack of identity.
She noted that a majority of local bakers sell unbranded items, which makes them invisible to both the consumer and government. “Please don’t copy, but run your own name,” Dlamini added.
“It’s fine to have a niche. If you bake scones, then bake scones and perfect that. Once you perfect that, you will be number one. But brand whatever it is so that we know it’s your brand.”
Dlamini centered on the need for a more aggressive, professional posture. She therefore encouraged bakers to embrace the catalyst of digital marketing, urging them to buy data and advertise on platforms like TikTok and WhatsApp.
“When we are looking for bakers, we have to go to Google because we don’t know you guys. Push. Be aggressive. Let’s go global to Mozambique; let’s know the person behind the brand.”
By focusing on presentable packaging and consistent branding, the Ministry believes Eswatini’s bakers can finally invade the supermarkets and replace imported goods with local excellence.
Dlamini concluded stating that the Ministry stands ready to help, ‘but the attitude of baking just for baking must first come to an end’.