Freetown, 16th December 2025- Sonoco Ltd. has secured a US$23 million loan from Proparco, the private‑sector financing arm of the French Development Agency (AFD), to construct Sierra Leone’s first industrial‑scale wheat flour mill and silo storage complex in Freetown.
The project will deliver a 600‑tonnes‑per‑day milling facility, capable of producing up to 140,000 tonnes of flour annually, alongside an integrated storage capacity of 40,000 tonnes. This marks a historic shift for Sierra Leone, a country of 8.8 million people that has until now relied entirely on imported wheat flour.
With the new mill, Sonoco is expected to transition from an importer to Sierra Leone’s largest flour producer, significantly reshaping the local wheat and flour supply chain. Beyond meeting domestic demand, the company plans to supply neighbouring markets, starting with Liberia and potentially expanding across the Mano River region.
“This world‑class wheat flour production unit will enable the country to have fresh and highly qualitative flour available every day,” said Sadio Dicko, Proparco’s Regional Director for West Africa. “West African countries must increase their control of food value chains to ensure food security and prosperity. This is exactly what we are doing with this project.”
The investment comes at a critical time. According to the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), an estimated 77% of Sierra Leone’s population is food insecure. By replacing a portion of imported flour with locally milled product, the project is expected to strengthen domestic value addition, reduce exposure to global supply disruptions, and create jobs across logistics, milling operations, and downstream distribution.
The initiative also aligns with the “Production” pillar of the Food and Agriculture Resilience (FARM) initiative, launched in 2022 by French President Emmanuel Macron in partnership with the European Union, the G7, and the African Union. FARM aims to bolster agricultural resilience against climate change, geopolitical shocks, and supply chain disruptions.
In 2025 alone, FARM‑linked programs mobilized US$14 million in private‑sector finance for smallholders in Ethiopia and Uganda, as part of a wider US$200 million package targeting farmers, agribusinesses, and agri‑food startups.
Sonoco Ltd. is part of Groupe Sonoco, a diversified West African conglomerate with roots in Guinea and operations spanning industry, construction, and real estate. With the new facility, the company is positioned to become a cornerstone of Sierra Leone’s food security strategy and a regional player in flour exports.
