METL expanded and diversified its business into agriculture in 1997 as part of its strategic vertical integration focus, designed to complement the company’s trading and manufacturing divisions. METL now owns 16 farms with a combined area of over 37,300 Ha spread across 5 regions of the country. The government of Tanzania has made agriculture a leading investment sector.

Presently agriculture accounts for about half of the national income (GNP), slightly more than 50% of mercantile exports and is a source of livelihood for about 70% of Tanzanians living in rural areas. Agriculture has a strong forward linkage to the industrial sector through companies engaged in agro-processing. The country has a good future potential for agriculture because of the existence of plenty of suitable virgin arable land, and it enjoys a comparative advantage in the production of food and cash crops.

The Tanzania Investment Centre has registered METL’s “Rehabilitation and Diversification Project” and more recently the Government has given METL “Strategic Investor Status” for its agricultural operations. Such support and its associated incentives have been pivotal in METL’s decision to expand its investment and interests in this hugely important sector of the Tanzanian economy.

Strategically, METL has focused on crops which meet certain specific criteria: they must be best- suited to the local agro-climatic environment, have strong markets both locally and internationally, offer processing potential for further value addition and create employment opportunities. At the moment, METL deals with cultivation and processing of sisal, cashewnut, cassava, cotton and tea.

Currently, the agriculture division is METL’s largest employer, with over 4,000 employees and the total number is forecast to increase to almost 10,000 within six years as METL’s agricultural projects develop and mature.