Papua New Guinea's local business industry be supported, say Rhado Piggery

JOE WASIA | Supported by the Bob Cleland Writing Fellowship

For years many local businesses in Papua New Guinea have never been given a face lift.  However, these local businesses have managed to survive with the most determined and dedicated hearts and minds.

Rhado-before moving to sales section

Rhado Piggery Limited is one good example. The company, formerly known as Hagen Planters Ltd, specializes in breeding-weaning, growing, producing and selling live and slaughtered pigs to the National Capital District and Central Provinces.The farm is located in 15-Mile along Sogeri road in Central Province, less than half an hour’s drive from Port Moresby. It’s located next to one of the PNG’s oldest companies, Hugo Cannery Ltd, a manufacturer of Ox & Palm tinned meat.

For more than 20 years, managing director of the company Robert Rasaka has been committed and dedicated to the business. Mr Rasaka told the National Development Bank (NDB) last year that he started the business with less then 50 pigs in early 1990s. Now the company has thousands of pigs and its one of the leading pig breeders in the country. Every
week hundreds of pigs are sold live or slaughtered and hundreds more are born to replace them. Mr Rasaka said major supermarkets in NCD order three times a week. And the company supplies them in hundreds. Individuals and families from different parts of the provinces also buy direct from the company. 

Rhado Piggery- breeding section

Recently Rhado expanded its business to Koita Oroma Boita (KOB) Estate, a few kilometres away, which is run separately but under the same company name. The new farm has around 2,000 pigs and it’s increasing production every week. In the next five years, its believed, the company will supply slaughtered and lives pigs to more than 70% of the fresh meat outlets in National Capital District and Central Provinces. If PNG has to move forward reducing high unemployment and poverty rates, funding and supporting local businesses by the national government is the paramount importance. This will in turn help
improve the economy on the country in the next few decades. 

In 2011, Mr Rasaka called on the government for tax exemption on stock feed to enable the piggery industry in PNG to survive and meet growing demands in the country. Radho Piggery spends around K444, 000 a month on stock feed from Goodman Fielder in Lae and sometimes buys from Australian suppliers. The company has survived with hard work, dedication and commitment despite zero assistance from any responsible government authorities or banks. It’s about time the government, through its responsible agencies, support local business by guaranteeing easy loans, tax concessions and promotion of the local businesses.

Over the years, Mr Rasaka said Rhado piggery had spent nearly K500, 000 annually on VAT alone. He stressed this money could have been his company’s annual profit that could be used to expand the business. Almost all financial assistance from the banks and government have been concentrated on multinational companies with little or no financial help to local businesses. Government must now shift its forecast to local businesses here in Papua New Guinea.

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