Rooted in Dodoma, Tanzania, Mainland Group’s sunflower seed oil production base began operation in July 2025. The project is supported by a complete system for grain and oil processing, storage and filling, with an annual capacity of 35,000 tonnes of sunflower seed oil and 70,000 tonnes of sunflower meal for animal feed. It has built the local brands Merrin Farm and Sunland to supply quality grain and oil products to the domestic market.

Between July and August 2026, Tanzania held two of its most important national festivals — Saba Saba and Nane Nane. Seizing these opportunities, Mainland Group ran themed exhibitions simultaneously across its five regional sales centres, engaging directly with local consumers and demonstrating its brand strength.

Saba Saba Festival

Saba Saba (7 July) means “seven seven” in Swahili and is a major national public holiday in Tanzania. It originated as the anniversary of the founding of the Tanganyika African National Union (TANU) on 7 July 1954, and bears witness to Tanzania’s struggle for national independence. Today, beyond its historical significance, the day has become closely linked with the Dar es Salaam International Trade Fair, making it one of East Africa’s largest general trade events.

During the festival, local people dress in their finest and head to the fairgrounds to browse and buy, much like at a traditional country market, and many families set aside part of their budget for festival purchases. It is at once a place for leisure and consumption and a key platform for local companies to present their products, expand sales channels and strengthen public awareness of their brands. At this year’s Saba Saba, Mainland brought its sunflower seed oil brands Merrin Farm and Sunland to the Dar es Salaam International Trade Fair, drawing numerous distributors, partners and consumers to its stand.

Nane Nane Festival

Nane Nane (8 August), which follows shortly after Saba Saba, means “eight eight” in Swahili. Also a statutory public holiday, it is known as National Farmers’ Day. The day pays tribute to farmers, livestock keepers and fisherfolk, and affirms the foundational role of agriculture in Tanzania’s national economy. Over the years, Nane Nane has grown into a highly influential agricultural exhibition in the country, drawing participants from across East Africa and running sub-events in multiple regions at the same time.

The exhibition brings together farmers, research institutions, agribusinesses and investors to showcase agricultural products, livestock achievements, fisheries resources and innovations in farming. Accompanied by local cultural performances, it combines industry exchange with public celebration. Mainland Group’s four regional operations in Mwanza, Arusha, Dodoma and Mbeya each took part in the local Nane Nane agricultural exhibitions.

At the venues, the regional teams set up their booths, displayed their products and carried out brand promotion. Visitors stopped to learn about the Mainland product range, while staff spoke face to face with buyers and consumers, further raising the brand’s local visibility and public recognition and bringing it closer to the end market.

Sunflower seed oil from Mainland’s Tanzanian base passes international testing and enters the European market

As the European market applies increasingly strict quality and safety standards to vegetable oils, Mainland’s sunflower seed oil plant in Tanzania has continued to strengthen its production management and quality control, carrying out production in strict accordance with international food safety requirements. The sunflower seed oil produced at the base has passed testing by SGS’s laboratory in Germany, with all key indicators meeting the relevant EU quality standards, demonstrating the quality and international competitiveness of African-made grain and oil products.

Testing report issued by the SGS laboratory in Germany (sample of crude sunflower seed oil submitted for testing)

Backed by reliable, consistent product quality and a stable supply capacity, this batch of sunflower seed oil has been successfully delivered to a client in Switzerland and has won the client’s approval, leading to regular monthly purchase orders. This marks the first time products from Mainland’s Tanzanian plant have been sold at scale in the European market, and represents an important step forward as the group expands its international trade channels and deepens its footprint in Africa’s grain and oil industry.