Bobo-Dioulasso tomato plant reaches full operation as SOBTO prepares next campaign

SOBTO reports full operations in Bobo-Dioulasso

The tomato-processing plant operated by Société burkinabè de tomate, or SOBTO, in Bobo-Dioulasso is running at full pace after overcoming difficulties during its start-up phase. Karim Traoré, director general of Burkina Faso’s Agency for the Promotion of Community Entrepreneurship, known as APEC Burkina, inspected the facility on September 9, 2026, to verify that production was continuing and to report on its operation to subscribers.

Production was active across the sections visited, including the packaging area, where substantial quantities of A’diaa tomato concentrate were ready for shipment to markets. Traoré reported that the plant held more than 1,000 drums in storage, in addition to packaged products awaiting distribution. He described the inventory as evidence that the factory can supply Burkina Faso’s domestic market.

Distribution becomes the immediate constraint

The available stocks also underline the next commercial challenge. SOBTO does not sell directly to consumers, and its director general, Adama Kaboré, called on distributors to collect the concentrate and improve its presence across the country. His appeal indicates that maintaining output will depend not only on processing tomatoes but also on moving finished goods through wholesale and retail channels.

Kaboré said A’diaa concentrate is produced from processed tomatoes without additives. He also said its price difference from some competing products remains relatively small, although the report did not provide retail or wholesale prices. APEC Burkina has supported modifications intended to improve parts of the plant, while Traoré stressed that continuous improvements in product quality are necessary for industrial production.

Local tomatoes are central to continuous production

The plant uses fresh tomatoes grown by farmers in Burkina Faso and processed by domestic technicians. That local supply link gives the facility a potential role in creating a more dependable outlet for growers and replacing part of the tomato concentrate otherwise sourced from outside the local processing system. The report, however, did not disclose the factory’s daily or annual processing capacity, its tomato purchasing volumes, or the size of Burkina Faso’s concentrate imports.

Raw-material seasonality remains the main operational risk. Traoré said that, after addressing start-up challenges, the priority is to maintain continuous production in an industry heavily dependent on the seasonal availability of tomatoes. APEC Burkina and its partners therefore plan to work with tomato producers to secure supplies for the coming months and prepare the next production campaign.

For growers, reliable procurement could provide an industrial buyer during the harvest and reduce pressure to sell highly perishable fresh tomatoes immediately. For SOBTO, the balance is more demanding: it must coordinate seasonal purchases, keep the processing line supplied and ensure that distributors clear existing concentrate stocks. The plant’s current inventory shows that production is functioning, but sustained operations will require both predictable farm supply and wider market placement for A’diaa.