French packer cements manufacturing base in South Africa

SOUTH AFRICAN – MAF Roda South Africa has formalized its manufacturing presence in Africa as it pushes to keep more production closer to its customers.

The French packline manufacturer has joined forces with Maintech, a packhouse equipment producer based in Paarl, to form MAFTECH, a company in which MAF Roda South Africa holds a 60 percent stake. The move follows years of working together on separate projects and reflects a clear shift toward local manufacturing.

Olivier Jaubert, operations manager at MAF Roda South Africa, says the decision grew out of hard lessons during Covid, when freight costs rose sharply.

“The shipping price on a packing table increased from 2,500 euros to 8,000 euros per container,” Jaubert says. “That’s a lot of cost for a customer.” At current exchange rates, this equals about US$2,700 rising to roughly US$8,640 per container.

In South Africa, packhouse projects often involve importing the sizer while sourcing peripherals locally. MAF Roda and Maintech decided to formalize this approach.

Under the new setup, MAF Roda continues to build sizers, electronic components, and selected machines such as tippers and automation equipment at its overseas factories. MAFTECH now produces the surrounding equipment in Paarl, including conveyors, sorting and packing tables, and bin fillers.

This shift has reduced the shipping burden on projects. “Where a full turnkey project would have required around twenty containers, it will now be maybe six or seven containers for the sizers,” Jaubert says. “Manufacturing the peripherals here results in at least 60 percent fewer containers.”

Faster response for packhouses

Local production also shortens delivery times when packhouses expand or need changes at short notice. Riaan Coetzee, managing director and co owner of MAFTECH, says speed matters in a seasonal industry.

When customers ask for line extensions or late upgrades, teams can now respond quickly without waiting for long shipping lead times. This has become a key advantage for growers working within tight harvest windows.

Jaubert adds that the joint venture makes MAF Roda the only international packline manufacturer with a production site in Africa. The company runs similar partnerships in Mexico and Australia.

MAF Roda operates in a crowded sizer market, but Jaubert points to its patented optics and sugar and acidity scanning as a clear strength.

“The latest external sorting, GLOBALSCAN 7, uses high definition cameras, multiple wavelengths, and fibre optic for high speed communication,” he says. “From a software point of view, developers around the world keep improving versions for all fruit and vegetables with artificial intelligence and an easy user interface.”

The company develops software for each fruit category and trains operators both on site and at its South African premises. “Scanning the sugar level is positive sorting,” Jaubert says. “Knowing the sugar levels means sorting for better quality and returns.”

Based on work across South Africa, the team sees limited full automation, with citrus leading in areas such as speed packing. Smaller packhouses in South Africa and Zimbabwe often need simpler systems, Jaubert notes, but the technology stands ready when demand grows.

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