The story of a pineapple: A day at the Del Monte Kenya farms, factory #AD

A string of buses, it’s hard to count all of them, are just now arriving near the busy entrance.

Staff disembark from the buses – many of them wearing smiles and small talk as they walk into the company.

It’s hard to count this sea of humanity – all of them employed at the giant company -- earning a decent living while making a significant contribution to the beautiful story of Del Monte pineapples.

This, we are told, is the afternoon team of staff; their shift is just about to start. The morning shift is just now finishing; a shift we hear takes eight hours, with intermittent breaks for staff to grab a warm cup of tea, or lunch…

Then there are those staff – and they are many – who reside at the adjacent staff quarters – a place many have called home for decades.

This partly explains why Del Monte Kenya has a thriving alumni movement, with some of the past staff having worked for the company for many decades.

Take the case of Victoria Mutungwa, who worked for Del Monte for 37 years before retiring. It’s not hard to meet her in the corridors of Del Monte – sharing a smile with current staff and still helping to tell the story of pineapples.

“Del Monte gave me an opportunity to grow through the ranks, and supported me at various levels,” says Victoria, who retired in 2020 after joining Del Monte in 1983.

Del Monte Kenya is a lifeline, a behemoth, one which residents of Thika and the surrounding community have come to love and cherish.

“Del Monte is an economic game changer in Thika and its surrounding areas. It is the lifeline of major towns around the area,” says Alfred Wanyoike, Chairman Business Community, Thika.

The company employs thousands of Kenyans, staff who are involved in various production processes once the fruit has left the farm; from the expansive fresh fruit section, the canary and the juices section, all powered by cutting-edge technology and dedicated teams.

The staff here know their stuff well. It’s refreshing to hear them break down the story of the pineapples – what it takes to produce this much-loved fruit.

It’s actually low season, but the pineapple needle still has to be kept moving because of the demand locally and abroad.

The company employs over 6,000 Kenyans directly and generates an estimated 28,000 additional jobs through affiliated businesses. That’s a big number.

Occasionally, you will be distracted by tens of trucks crisscrossing between the expansive fields and the factory, transporting pineapples to the relevant sections for onward processing.

Well, it’s a story that begins on the farms, supported by a cocktail of teams of people working to ensure there is a continuous and endless supply of good pineapples.

The crops are at different stages of growth; some are just now showing, others are due for harvest in a few days, while others are ready for harvest. Many other crops are at a different stage of harvest.

“The pineapples are harvested based on shell colour, size or weight, and finally the market,” says Edward Ayen, Supervisor, Harvesting Operations at Del Monte Kenya.

According to Moses Mulili, the Agricultural Manager at Del Monte Kenya Ltd, pineapple growing is a long process that spans a period of 18 months to harvest the first time.

Although the farms are the blood vein of the company, inside the Canary, the fresh market section, and the juice line is where innovation meets passion.

It’s inside the factory that men and women work closely with machines to ensure the timely production of authentic pineapple products.

It’s a marvel to see and experience how innovation and man have powered Del Monte. It tastes good because it’s Del Monte.