Astral Foods’ Zambian operations, Tiger Animal Feeds and Tiger Chicks, were represented at the recent Astral 20 Keys Conference, held under the theme “Excellence in Execution”.

The conference brought together teams from across the Group to share their Continuous Improvement journeys, exchange ideas and celebrate initiatives that are delivering measurable improvements across the business. For the Zambian operations, it was an opportunity to share a story shaped not only by investment in technology and systems, but by our people, our culture and our commitment to continuously finding better ways of working.

Unlocking the engines of excellence

Under the presentation “Unlocking the Engines of Excellence”, the Zambia team shared how the 20 Keys principles have supported the transformation of Tiger Animal Feeds and Tiger Chicks through three interconnected areas: People, Process and Technology. The journey has included the commissioning of Tiger Animal Feeds’ automated feed mill in 2024, developing the skills required for a changing operating environment, standardising  processes and work instructions, improving inventory visibility and accountability, and eliminating waste through digitalisation.

The presentation also highlighted how Continuous Improvement has extended beyond the production floor. Teams across finance, production and other functions have worked together to improve processes, strengthen controls and create greater alignment across the business.

This journey has reinforced a simple but important lesson for the Zambia team: Technology creates opportunity.
People deliver excellence. The conference was particularly meaningful as Tiger Animal Feeds celebrates 30 years in Zambia, marking three decades of growth, investment and contribution to Zambia’s agricultural sector. Tiger Chicks is also approaching its own 20-year milestone in the coming years.

Given Minziwe Majula, Financial Manager at Tiger Animal Feeds and Tiger Chicks.

Tiger Chicks recognised for best cost improvement initiative for Astral Zambian operations

A highlight of the conference was the recognition of Tiger Chicks with the award for Best Cost Improvement Initiative. The winning initiative focused on improving production performance across the breeder and hatchery operation. The Tiger Chicks team analysed the factors limiting performance and identified bottlenecks across people,  methods, machinery and materials. This allowed the team to implement targeted operational improvements aimed at strengthening breeder performance, fertility and hatchability while reducing egg rejects. The results
were significant.

The team continues to identify opportunities for further improvement, demonstrating one of the principles at the heart of the 20 Keys journey: Continuous Improvement is an ongoing process of understanding performance gaps, identifying root causes and finding better ways of working. The award represents more than the results achieved. It recognises the commitment of the Tiger Chicks team, whose collaboration, problem-solving skills and willingness to challenge existing ways of working translated improvement opportunities into measurable results.

Excellence driven by people

The recognition of Tiger Chicks, together with the opportunity to share Zambia’s broader transformation journey, made the conference a special occasion for Astral Foods’ Zambian operations. It also provided an opportunity to share more of the Zambian experience and culture with colleagues from across the Group and demonstrate how our people have embraced the 20 Keys principles to drive change within our businesses.

As Tiger Animal Feeds celebrates 30 years in Zambia and Tiger Chicks moves towards its own 20-year milestone, the focus remains firmly on developing our people, strengthening our processes, embracing technology and continuously raising the standard. For Astral Foods’ Zambian operations, Excellence in Execution is not about one major project or one moment of success. It is about our people making better decisions, challenging the way we work and delivering small improvements every day.

Technology creates opportunity. People deliver excellence.

For more information about the conference and Tiger Chicks’ award, please contact Given Minziwe Majula at (+260)96-677-1229 or send an email to Given.Majula@Tigerfeeds.com.zm