1. Product Description: Soya bean proteins are available on the market in the form of deflated Soya bean flours (DSF) protein concentrate, protein isolate but seldom as whole flour which includes the seed oil with all its vitamin E, phospholipids and other micronutrients. By refining Soya bean oil essential micronutrients are eliminated; extracted Soya bean oil is separated from phospholipids (lecithin) through the degumming process and, in the deodorization process, part of the vitamin E is also lost. The Production of whole Soya bean flour has the advantage that the micronutrients are preserved. The diet of all pre-school and school children should normally contain vitamin E and lecithin, since these compounds are essential for the development of the brain and nerve cells.
2. Rationale: In countries like ours where there is deficiency in many types of food nutrients, crops like Soya bean reduce the magnitude of this deficiency to some extent if they are available in sufficient quantity and if consumers are well aware about the nutrition content of this crop. A soya bean is produced in many parts of out country. But it is not considered as a staple food and its consumption is limited. Besides, people in rural areas do not know that the crop could be processed to produce different types of food, which is rich in protein and other nutrition. For producing nutrition rich food varieties especially useful to the physical and mental development of children, the production of Soya beans, its processing and distribution should be encouraged both at the national and regional level.
3. Market Potential: Soya bean is mixed with other food ingredients to make infant foods, enriched flour for pasta, bakery products, meat substitutes, etc. In countries where Soya beans is available, wheat flour contains a minimum of 3 percent of defatted Soya beans flour (DSF). If Soya beans flour is available in our country, one could assume that the flour mills will add Soya beans to the wheat flour to enhance the nutrition content of their product. This means if 500,000 tons of wheat flour is produced in the country, the demand for Soya beans flour will be 15,000 tons. With this assumption, the demand for Soya bean flour is projected to be 28,000 tones in 2006 and will grow to 36,000 by 2011. This demand projection, though it is preliminary, indicates the existence of a demand that is large enough to absorb the production of a Soya beans processing plant.
4. Sources of Raw Material: While the major raw material is Soya beans, inputs such as hexane solvent, caustic soda, and bleaching agents are needed. Soya beans will be produced in the country; the others will be imported.
5. Process and Technology: The main stages of Soya beans processing are storage, drying and dehulling, separation of hulls from the cotyledons, preconditioning, extrusion, drying and cooling and milling. Each processing stage has different sub-stages. Machinery and equipment include Soya bean storage, dehuller, binder, extruder, dryer-cooler, pin mill, boiler, water treatment and laboratory.
6. Estimated Investment: - for a plant which will produce about 10,000 tons of defatted Soya bean flour, the estimated investment will be the following.
· Buildings 1000 m2 at Birr 2500/ m2 ………… =Birr 2,500,000
· Machinery and Equipment …………………….. =Birr 6,550,000
· Working capital ………………………………. = Birr 700,000
Total …. = Birr 9,750,000
7. Benefits: Increases protein rich food supply in the country, improves the physical and mental development and growth of children stimulates soya beans production, saves foreign exchange, and introduces new skills and technology.
8. Location: Large zonal capital where there is actual and potential production of Soya beans crops.