MAKERERE UNIVERSITY

COLLEGE OF NATURAL SCIENCES

DEPARTMENT OF CHEMISTRY

DATE OF VISIT:9TH NOVEMBER 2023

AMITAI ISRAEL NICKITINE

23/U/06008/PS

A REPORT ON BIDCO UGANDA DURING AN INDUTRIAL STRIP

BIDCO Uganda limited is located in Masese, Jinja.The departure for this trip was at 7:00 am and we
arrived at 10:45 am. Our supervisor for this trip was Doctor J Kasule.

OBJECTIVES OF THE TRIP

The aim of this trip was to get an insight into the process of oil production, soap production and
other industrial processes that take place to form various products such as plastic jerrycans,
detergents and also learn about the company’s operations. The report aims to show the company’s
operations and production processes.

HISTORY OF THE COMPANY

BIDCO Uganda limited is an agricultural processing industry located in Masese Jinja.It was founded in
1994. It is Uganda’s leading manufacturer of east Africa moving consumer goods. It was established
in 2005 as an edible oil and soap manufacturing plant and it has continuously grown over the years.
The tour guide Mr. Magezi Julius added on to say that the company majorly specialized in the
processing of majorly palm fruits which are grown on Kalangala island on a very large piece of land
given to the company by the government of Uganda. Mr. Magezi also mentioned that the company
produces a wide range of products which include edible oils like fortune butto, detergents, laundry
bar soap and vegetable oil like cowboy. BIDCO Uganda limited is a joint venture between BIDCI
Africa limited and Wilmar International Limited supported by the International Fund for Agricultural
Development and the World Bank. It was formed to empower small holder farmers and increase
vegetable oil production in Uganda. BIDCO Uganda limited has a strong presence in the domestic
market and has also expanded its operations to international markets. The company has been in
operation for over 15 years and has established a strong reputation for quality and innovation in the
industry.
DEPARTMENTS
QUALITY ASSURANCE

This department works to ensure and gives confidence to the customers that the products are
reliable, sustainable and gives the customers their value for money.

QUALITY CONTROL

In this department, numerous confirmation activities are done to ensure that the product process
gives output that is market ready. One of the highlights of the visit was learning about the
company’s commitment to quality control. BIDCO Uganda limited had strict quality control measures
in place at every stage of the production process from raw material sourcing to final packaging. This
included regular testing for contaminants such as heavy metals as well as sensory testing for flavor
and aroma.

INSPECTION DEPARTMENT

Here, looking for unsatisfactory activities that fall short of the company’s standards to be
competitive on the global stage are addressed.

PRODUCTION PROCESS
In the course of the visit to the company, we were taken on a tour of the whole manufacturing
facility and shown the different stages of the production process by our tour guide. The major
product is edible oil and is processed from palm fruit grown in Kalangala. The palm fruits are
harvested, cleaned, milled, and then crushed to squeeze out the mesocarp part of the seed to
extract oil. The oil obtained in this case is crude oil. Crude oil is then transported from Kalangala to
the company using ships at the Dockery near the company where it is offloaded on to trucks that
carry it to the company’s plants. However not all crude oil that is got from Kalangala is used by the
company. Only 20% of the crude oil is used by the company and the remaining 80% percent is
imported to other countries for further processing such as Singapore.Crude oil is then stored in
designated tanks for its storage. The crude oil is first heated to reduce its viscosity and facilitate
processing. The company has large boilers for generation of steam used in heating process and the
main sources of fuel are wood and biogas. Steam is supplied through well insulated lagged pipes to
the end points of use. Water is added to the oil and stirred causing the gum in the oil to precipitate
and be removed. The oil is then transferred to the refinery plant. During physical refining,
phosphoric acid is added to the oil to remove phosphatides, impurities and pigments like carotenes
which if left reduce the shell life of the oil. The intermediate product is then sent to the fractionation
stage where the solid oil is separated from liquid oil by use of large filters where oil is squeezed and
the liquid oil goes through leaving the hard oil on top of the filters. The hard oil is removed and put
in to storage tanks which is later used for soap making. The fat from hard oil is used to make
vegetable fat like cowboy and kimbo. The bi-product from the refining process contains many free
fatty acids usually called the palm fatty acid distillate (PFAD). The deodorizer is used to remove the
fatty acids that are later used to make other kinds of soap. In manufacture of detergents, linear alkyl
benzene sulphonic acid is reacted with caustic soda to form soap. Silicates and carbonates are added
to remove hardness in water while washing. Bleaching agents such as sodium perborate are added
to remove tough stains. Foaming agents are also added such as sodium lauryiether sulphate. The
detergent mixture is then subjected to spray drying which involves changing the liquid mixture into
fine droplets and then dried using hot air. The dried particles are cooled and then screened to
remove any oversize particles or impurities. During the post blending process, appeasing agents like
speckles are added and brightness agents such as tinopol. Enzymes are also added to the detergent
mixture for cleaning organic dirt. The fat from the hard oil is cooled down with liquid ammonia in air
jacket forming vegetable fat. During the blending process of this vegetable fat, nitrogen is added to
increase bulkiness of the fat. Vitamins are also added for fortification of the fat like vitamin A. In the
saponification process, raw materials include (1) oil blend; stearin from the manufacture of cooking
oil is used to make this oil blend. (2) Caustic soda; used in soap processing to dissolve fats upon
heating. (3) Sodium silicate; serves as a binder for hardening soap .it provides alkalinity and a
suspension during washing. Saponification process is reacted with the oil blend to form crude soap.
Color is added bit by bit until the homogeneous mixture is formed. Foaming agent sodium lauryl
ether sulphate is added to incorporate lather in soap. Glycerin and water are removed but some
glycerin is left to make the soap smooth and soft. Soap is passed through a spray of citric acid to
remove the remaining sodium hydroxide and the remaining water is removed by vacuum. The soap
is then perfumed and packaged then labelled for distribution

Bleaching Palm fatty

acid Storage
earth

Crude oil Degumming Temp.255°-260°

storage and Bleached oil deodorization
Bleaching
Vacuum 1-3
bars

Spent earth
Refined
beached
deodorized oil
Storage Stearin
Fractionation plant
\

Storage

Storage
Olein
MANUFUCTURE OF SOAP
RAW MATERIALS
Oil blend; stearine from the manufacture of cooking oil is used to make the oil blend.

Caustic soda; it is used in processing to dissolve fats upon heating.

Sodium silicate; serves as a binder for hardening soap. It provides alkalinity and a suspension during
washing.

PROCESS
1. Saponification; caustic soda is reacted with the blend to form crude soap. It is an exothermic
reaction at 90⁰ and 3 bars of pressure inside the reactor called the cruncher. Color is added
bit by bit until the mixture is homogenized and then it is cooled for inspection to occur for
complete saponification. Sodium lauryl is added to incorporate lather in soap.
2. Glycerin and water are removed though some of the glycerin is left to keep the soap soft and
smooth.
3. Soap is passed through a spray of citric acid to remove the remaining sodium hydroxide and
the remaining water is removed by vacuum.
4. The soap is then perfumed and cut.

FLOW CHART

OVER HEAD
CRUNCHER FEED TANK ATOMIZER
TANKS

DUPLEX SIMPLEX
STAMPING VACUUM SPRAY
PLODDER PLODDER

CUTTING DRYING PACKAGING

OTHER PRODUCTS PRODUCED BY BIDCO UGANDA

1. Detergent
2. Plastics like jerry cans
3. Curry powder

WASTE MANAGEMENT
Another vital aspect of the company’s operations was its commitment to environmental
sustainability. BIDCO Uganda limited implemented various measures to reduce its environmental
impact such as use of recyclables and treatment of waste in accordance with the standards of
National Environmental Management Authority of Uganda. Seeds from the palm fruits are not
wasted but rather brought to the company and crushed to produce powder which goes through
three stages of pressing in machines to separate the oil from the powder. This is called kernel oil and
its packed and sold to other factories for other industrial uses.

BENEFITS OF BIDCO TO UGANDA

1. Offered jobs to Ugandans hence they have improved their living standards.
2. Pay tax to the government of Uganda hence is a source of revenue
3. Development of infrastructure through the construction of roads in and around the
company

DECLARATION
I declare that all the contents of this report are gathered and compiled by me and therefore it is
original as my hand and not plagiarized.

CONCLUSION
Overall, the tour to BIDCO Uganda limited was a valuable learning experience. I learnt about the
production process of soap, oil and vegetable fat. Also, I learnt about quality control. The visit was
well organized and informative and I appreciate the opportunity to learn and get knowledge from
industrial experts. I got inspired to achieve great through the world of chemistry.