Gambega Limited, one of the leading beverage companies in the country last Friday held a press conference to brief members of the media about the company's processing facilities, value added services among others.
Journalists were also taken on a conducted tour of the facility at its premises in Kanifing.
Gambega is a subsidiary of the Equatorial coco-cola bottling distributing major brands such as Coco-cola, Fanta orange, Fanta cocktail, Fanta currant, Fanta strawberry, Sprite, Schweppes, Soda and Krest.
The aim and objectives of the company, according to senior officials, is to create value added services and to make a difference in benefiting its customer, dealers, wholesalers, distributors, and the communities it serves. As a reliable partner in development, Gambega provides direct and indirect employment through its permanent staff and through its dealers and retailers and also support to its business suppliers.
Speaking to journalists, Mr Fadel Fall, Technical Manager of Gambega described his company as a reliable partner for sustainable development, services to the community, and a dominant player in the soft drink market.
Dilating on the processes involved, he added that the raw materials are water from Nawec, concentrates, chemicals for water treatment, and sugar. He noted that packing involved bottles, crown corks, and plastic crates.
Mr Fall said that the raw material from Nawec is stored in a raw water tank and treated in two reaction tanks with chemical additives and finally filtered in three stages.
He revealed that the treated water is used to dilute the sugar as the syrup is produced, adding that the syrup is filtered and pumped into the final syrup tanks where concentrates are added after settlement and analysis. Then, he went on final syrup is released for production through filtration meshes by a mean of pumps.
He said the beverage is produced in the famix, which is mainly composed by the treated water tank, the dosing pump, the final beverage tank, the circulating pump, and the vacuum pump.
He further asserted that the treated water is de-aerated by a vacuum system before being chilled and mixed with the final syrup and cordon dioxide, adding that the final beverage is sent directly to the filler.
He however noted cleaned and inspected bottles washer are immediately filled and crowned to avoid any possible contamination, saying that the filled bottles receive a data code for tractability purpose before being crated and palletised.
During the process, he added the quality team in the laboratory takes samples, checking parameters, performing analysis and keeping records.
