TrendType | 19 March 2026Vamara Group acquires Zimbabwean dairy processor Dendairy
On March 11th 2026, Zimbabwe’s Competition and Tariff Commission (CTC) approved the acquisition of a 100% stake in the dairy producer Dendairy by Vamara Group and 3DZ Capital. The merger vertically integrates the supply chain for Dendairy.
Dendairy was founded in 2004 by the Coetzee family and is a major Zimbabwean dairy processor. The company operates two primary dairy farms in Kwekwe and sources raw milk from a network of contract farmers. Its product portfolio includes UHT milk, ice cream, and dairy-blended juices, which are sold domestically and exported to regional markets like Mozambique and Zambia. Dendairy accounts for around 10% of the national milk intake, processing over 4m litres of milk monthly.
Vamara Group is a Mauritius-registered FMCG company wholly owned by the Export Trading Group (ETG). ETG is a multinational conglomerate spanning agricultural inputs, logistics, and food processing across 45 countries. In Zimbabwe, ETG already operates the ZimGold consumer brand and previously invested $20m to revive the David Whitehead textile factory. 3DZ Capital is an investment company owned by Daryl Archibald, a director at Dendairy.
In 2021, Dendairy spent a year negotiating a merger with Dairibord Holdings, but the talks fell apart over differences in strategy. Dendairy wanted to stay involved in the business and expand its Kwekwe plant. The new ETG deal achieves exactly this: Archibald’s firm, 3DZ Capital, remains a key partner, and the Kwekwe facility secures major investment.
The acquisition is a vertical integration to control the entire dairy supply chain. Animal feed is the largest single cost in dairy farming, accounting for up to 80% of total production expenses. Because ETG owns Edurate Investments, a company that manufactures stockfeed, the merger connects the supply of upstream agricultural inputs with Dendairy’s downstream processing facilities, reducing costs.
The CTC raised concerns that ETG could use its control over cattle feed to give Dendairy cheaper prices, putting other dairy farmers at a disadvantage. Consequently, the CTC approved the deal on the strict condition that Vamara Group, Dendairy, and their affiliates conduct all trade with suppliers and customers on non-discriminatory terms.
The Zimbabwean dairy market is recovering after years of declining production. The dairy sector approaches national milk self-sufficiency, hitting 128.8m litres in 2025. Because Zimbabwe is producing its own milk and companies like Dendairy are producing their own feed, Zimbabwe is building resilience in its supply chain against global price shocks and currency shortages.
