Meat Cove brings fresh meat supplies |11 July 2006

Based at Anse Des Genets in the heart of a small housing community, Meat Cove is owned by Mr Denis Payette, a former Seychelles Breweries Ltd employee with long years of experience in marketing and production. Mr Payette has also gained expertise in  dairy production after working with the Seychelles Marketing Board for 10 years. He is also well versed in food handling technology.

Mr Payette, who said he has always wanted to become "his own boss," started to make plans to invest in his own business about two years ago.

"The idea was to launch into venture that was not too dependable on foreign exchange and one that produces to meet consumer needs.

The whole business started from scratch at a cost of R2.4 million which comprised the construction of the one-storey building and investment made in acquiring processing equipment that is in conformity with international standards.

The bulk of the capital came directly from Mr Payette, while a small loan was obtained from the Mauritius Commercial Bank.

Mr Payette said the business is strategically located, within the community where consumers tend to be loyal, but Meat Cove is also attracting clients from various areas of Mahe.

Safety, quality and hygiene are some key guiding factors which Mr Payette said he is focusing a lot on.

"After working at SBL for so many years, you cannot but be safety-conscious," he said, adding that when selecting equipment for production and storage, he has also been compelled to choose those that deliver best in terms of quality with appropriate temperature controls and durability. 

The processing equipment, he said, were imported from Dubai, whilst the cold stores and chillers came from France. 

Whilst expressing his appreciation for the support given by the commercial bank in the purchase of the equipment, Mr Payette said, as an agricultural processor, he has also benefitted from incentives on trades tax and Goods and Services Tax (GST) offered by government on the import of capital equipment.

Meat Cove, he said, has recipes for a variety of sausages, some of which are not available on the local market, but popular in Europe like the bouden blan.  Goat, pork, lamb, beef are some of the meat products that consumers can find at Meat Cove.
Consumers can also in the future expect a variety of smoked products from the company.

Meat Cove currently employs a fully qualified butcher, Jamie Esther, who has previously worked with Meat Corner and Swiss Gourmet. He is assisted by a processing technician.