Potchefstroom Process® Based in Potchefstroom, a university town in North West Province, South Africa, Specialised Protein Products’ multi-million dollar soybean processing plant is dedicated to the manufacture of soy ingredients for the general foods, dairy and processed meat industries. SPP started as  a subsidiary of the Denel Group, South Africa’s leading high-tech conglomerate.
A night time view of SPP's multi-million dollar soybean processing plant  [click image]

SPP acquired HACCP (Hazard Analysis Critical Control Points) and ISO 9001 Quality Assurance certification by Deutsche Qualitat Samtung (DQS) in December 2002 and subsequently by BVQI.

		Safety, Health and Environmental (SHE), Food Safety and Quality Management Systems (TQM) cover all activities on site and at subcontractor levels. Customers, sub- contractors and contractors are informed on the uses, storage, transportation and disposal of SPP products.
In a highly controlled soaking environment the typical 'beany' taste, is destroyed.  [click image]

SPP’s Potchefstroom Process^® differs substantially from and is more selective than many processes employed elsewhere in the world. The technology uses a natural, water-extraction process as opposed to chemical extraction methods.

In the United States, for example, soy processing plants generally dehull the beans. This usually involves extraction of the oil, leading to a relatively dry product. SPP’s Potchefstroom Process® eliminates this requirement.

It was recognised very early on that SPP commanded three important marketing advantages, for not only were its products unusually bland in taste and ‘non-beany’, but the process did not use chemicals.

The United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has recently initiated a mandatory review of all new genetically engineered products before introduction into the market – with guidelines being defined by the US Department of Agriculture (USDA) for labelling of GM, non-GM and organic products. The introduction of tighter controls has been paralleled in other countries, most notably the EU, Australia, New Zealand and Japan. Although no mandatory labelling is required in South Africa for foods containing GMO's, these regulations are expected in the near future.

However, there is no dispute that soy can be an important component in nutrition, assisting in the lowering of blood serum cholesterol to normal levels. There are also strong indications that soy might protect against chronic diseases and disorders of lifestyle - according to the latest exploratory research. (See Soy, Nutrition & Health section of the Website.)

The Plant

Potchefstroom was chosen as an ideal plant site because of the bountiful water supply available from the Mooi River (‘beautiful river’), the competitive cost of coal and electricity, proximity to raw materials and the main South African processed-food manufacturing centres.

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