Vegetarian crocodiles make a mean burger
GREAT SKIN: Despite their veggie diet, maize- and soy-fed Zimbabwean crocs supply their hides to the makers of high-end luxury goods EVER wondered how a crocodile — famed for its ferocity and killer instinct — can survive without huge chunks of meat?
Well, it is now possible, thanks to a Zimbabwean Stock Exchange-listed crocodile and alligator farming company that has developed a largely vegetarian diet for the reptiles which is helping it cull larger and higher quality skins and meat.
“[The] diet is largely vegetarian; it is maize meal, it is soya, it is wheat and it has got some fish meal and a little meat meal. But a large proportion of the diet is vegetarian,” said Gary Sharp, CEO of Padenga Holdings.
The company has been running since 1965 but decided to list on the exchange five years ago to raise cash — the first crocodile company to list on the continent. For investors, including Old Mutual, it has been a modest success. Since listing in 2010, its share price has doubled, and last year it climbed by 8.3%.
Sharp said there have been “better growth rates” for the animals following the introduction of their “vegetarian diet”. It also helps the company since vegetable protein is cheaper than meat.
“It’s an evolution in the nutritional formula; it’s simply the fact that the protein is coming from a vegetarian source but it’s still the same protein and it does the same thing to the animal.”
This certainly helped profits, which amounted to $6-million (R72.1-million) for the year to December — nearly double the previous year’s figures. Finance director for Padenga, Oliver Kamundimu, said orders from top-tier buyers that supply crocodile skins to luxury goods producers such as Gucci and Louis Vuitton increased during the period.
In addition to the crocodile farms in Zimbabwe, which had 163 274 crocodiles on the ground at the end of last year, Padenga also owns half of Lone Star Alligators in Texas, in the US.
Last year, it culled 43 000 crocodiles in Zimbabwe and 15 139 alligators in the US — selling the meat and the skins.
New demand from all over the world is likely to drive its profit for the next few years.
In particular, there is strong demand from food outlets in Europe and Asia keen to sell crocodile burgers. Some of the crocodile meat products aimed at the younger generation come with burger rolls moulded in the shape of a crocodile.
“Crocodile burgers are a growing phenomenon that is very exciting in some markets,” said Padenga.
Padenga’s parent company, Innscor Africa, runs a number of fast-food operations in Zimbabwe, including the local outlets of Nando’s, Chicken Inn and Steers. However, crocodile is not currently on any of their menus.
The company, according to executives, benefited from the weaker rand. There is strong market demand for premium skins from the top branded luxury goods manufacturers, and last year the price of crocodile skins rose by 6% and the volume of meat sold by Padenga grew by 35% to 282 tons.
Padenga seems to be one of the few success stories in a Zimbabwean economy that is battling to grow.
“We normally don’t face the liquidity issues and the viability issues that most of the businesses here are facing,” said Sharp.
Its share price has doubled since 2010, and last year it climbed 8.3%