Chapter 03 · The Cassava Anchor

From living root to industrial starch

A 30-tonne-per-day cassava-to-starch plant in the Sandiara Special Economic Zone, Thiès Region — engineered from field to bag around one principle: move fast, waste nothing, prove every step.

03

The Site

Sandiara Special Economic Zone, Thiès

On the A1/RN1 corridor, 45 minutes from Blaise Diagne International Airport and 90 minutes from the Port of Dakar, within 60 km of the cassava belt (Tivaouane, Thiès, Fatick). SEZ status brings investment incentives and streamlined customs for imported equipment.

The Feedstock

Nucleus farm + outgrower network

A 500-hectare mechanized nucleus farm (30% of supply) plus 2,000+ smallholder outgrowers within 50 km (70%), with guaranteed floor prices and input support. Denzel’s own fleet moves roots farm-to-factory within 24 hours. A 100-hectare paid pilot season must prove reliable volumes and quality before the plant scales.

The Buyers

Named anchor pipeline, then export

An offtake pipeline led by Grands Moulins de Dakar (anchor letter of intent), with Patisen, SOBOA, SEDIMA Group, and regional pharmaceutical buyers — and the balance exported across UEMOA and ECOWAS through the Port of Dakar under AfCFTA.

0t/dayFresh cassava roots processed daily — 30 tonnes of starch per day out
0t/yrFood-grade and industrial starch per year at 300 operating days — 5% of West Africa’s ~180,000 t import demand
0hoursFrom harvest to factory intake — roots move within 24 hours, preserving starch content and quality
Stainless steel processing lines inside a modern starch plant, technicians inspecting equipment
Freshly harvested cassava roots being packed into crates at the farm

Concept imagery · The 30 t/day starch hall & farm-to-factory root supply within 24 hours

Full technical, commercial, and financial detail is set out in the business plan, available on request under NDA.

The Process

Root to bag in
four steps

A continuous line turns perishable roots into a stable industrial commodity within hours of arrival — nothing is wasted, and every stage is monitored.

01
Fresh cassava roots on the washing line at intake
Reception & washing

Fresh intake

Within 24 hours of harvest

Roots are weighed, dry-cleaned, and passed through paddle washers that strip away sand, stones, and peel fragments before a single root is processed.

02
Stainless steel extractors and hydrocyclone banks in the extraction hall
Rasping & extraction

Starch release

Cell walls opened at speed

High-speed raspers open the root cells; extractors wash the starch out of the fibre, and hydrocyclone banks refine the starch milk to food-grade purity.

03
Flash dryer towers and starch sieving station
Dewatering & flash drying

Dried in seconds

Moisture below 13%

The refined starch milk is dewatered and flash-dried in a stream of hot air — seconds, not hours — locking in whiteness, viscosity, and shelf stability.

04
Finished starch being bagged in 50 kg sacks
Quality control & bagging

Tested & dispatched

Every batch laboratory-tested

Each batch is tested against ISO 22000 and HACCP standards, bagged in 25 kg and 50 kg B2B sacks, and dispatched with full plot-to-bag traceability.

Concept imagery · The processing line at target scale · co-products (peels & fibre) fuel the biomass boiler

Implementation

24 months from launch to
commercial operations

Cassava’s 9–12 month maturity dictates the critical path: farming begins 12 months before the plant is commissioned.

MobilizationAgronomy Director hired · nucleus farm secured · outgrower launch with 500 farmers · EPC contractor selected
Q1 2027
Pilot proof & construction startPilot harvest data in · at-scale planting · equipment ordered (8–10 month lead) · ISO 22000 initiated
Q2–Q3 2027
Harvest, installation & commissioningFirst cassava harvest · equipment delivery and installation · trial production · food-safety inspection
Q4 2027–Q1 2028
Full commercial operationsFirst B2B shipments · outgrower network expanded past 1,000 farmers
Q2 2028
Scale & Phase 2 planning75% capacity · 2,000+ outgrowers · modified starch line planning · customer base expansion
2029

Quality from day one: ISO 22000 and HACCP implemented from construction, an in-house laboratory testing every batch, and full digital traceability from outgrower plot to dispatched bag.

Laboratory technician testing a sample of white cassava starch beside a precision balance

Concept imagery · In-house QC laboratory — every batch tested, ISO 22000 & HACCP from day one

The Numbers

The financials live in the
business plan

This page tells the operational story. The complete figures are reserved for qualified investors and shared under NDA.

Available under NDA The Business Plan

A complete investment memorandum covering the cassava anchor from agronomy to exit — prepared July 2026 and maintained as the project advances.

Request the business plan

What it contains

  • Unit economics and full cost structure, stress-tested
  • Five-year financial projections to steady state
  • Capital requirement, use of funds, and staged release gates
  • Deal terms, governance, and investor protections
  • Complete risk register with mitigations
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