Imperial Cold Storage and Supply Company (ICS) was one of the largest meat processing, storage, distribution and marketing companies in

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the Southern Africa, southernmost country in Africa. Its Provinces of South Africa, nine provinces are bounded to the south by of coastline that stretches along the Atlantic O ...

, dominating the South African packaged food sector for almost a hundred years. The company was formally registered and listed as ICS in 1899, originally it grew out of Combrinck & CO. which was founded in 1830 in

Cape Town Cape Town is the legislature, legislative capital city, capital of South Africa. It is the country's oldest city and the seat of the Parliament of South Africa. Cape Town is the country's List of municipalities in South Africa, second-largest ...

. Combrinck & CO. was then merged into ICS. ICS was one of the largest meat processing and distribution companies in the world. The company originally concentrated on supplying ships, but would go on to develop the first cold-storage enterprise in South Africa in conjunction with the Union and Castle shipping lines.

Sir David Graaff, 1st Baronet Sir David Pieter de Villiers Graaff, 1st Baronet (30 March 1859 – 13 April 1931) was a South African cold storage magnate and politician. Graaff revolutionized the cold storage industry in Africa. He founded the Imperial Cold Storage and Sup ...

was a founder, chairman and major shareholder.

Rhodesian operation

In 1924, the then government of

Southern Rhodesia Southern Rhodesia was a self-governing British Crown colony in Southern Africa, established in 1923 and consisting of British South Africa Company (BSAC) territories lying south of the Zambezi River. The region was informally known as South ...

, now

Zimbabwe file:Zimbabwe, relief map.jpg, upright=1.22, Zimbabwe, relief map Zimbabwe, officially the Republic of Zimbabwe, is a landlocked country in Southeast Africa, between the Zambezi and Limpopo Rivers, bordered by South Africa to the south, Bots ...

, granted a ten-year monopoly to the company. Enforced by act of government, it also guaranteed the company's operations in Rhodesia for the duration of its monopoly with an up to GB£15 000 per annum guaranteed against losses resulting from its operations. In return Imperial Cold Storage agreed to develop the country's chilled and frozen beef industry. In terms of the act's objective to establish a beef packing and processing industry in Rhodesia the government's partnership with Imperial Cold Storage was a success.MLAMBO, A. S. (1996
"The Cold Storage Commission: A Colonial Parastatal 1938-1963"
Zambezia (1996), XXIII (i). (p.57)

Tiger Brands buyout

Due to the high costs of expansion in southern Africa along with a slump in the demand for meat following the

Great Depression The Great Depression was a severe global economic downturn from 1929 to 1939. The period was characterized by high rates of unemployment and poverty, drastic reductions in industrial production and international trade, and widespread bank and ...

in 1934 the company was in serious financial trouble. More money was sought from investors to help shore up the companies finances.

Anglo-American Anglo-American can refer to: * the Anglosphere (the Anglo-American world) * Anglo-American, something of, from, or related to Anglo-America ** the Anglo-Americans demographic group in Anglo-America * Anglo American plc Anglo American plc is a ...

corporation was the largest investor and the total capital of the company increased to GB£2.2 million (equivalent to £ in ). Anglo's share in the company would continue to grow as Imperial Cold Storage worked more and more with Tiger Oats, then a subsidiary of Anglo-American corporation. In March 1982 Barlow bought a considerable share of Tiger Oats and a controlling share in Imperial Cold Storage. In October 1998

Tiger Brands Tiger Brands Limited () is a South African packaged goods company. In addition to the company's South African operations, Tiger Brands has direct and indirect interests in international food businesses in Chile, Zimbabwe, Mozambique, Nigeria, K ...

(then known as Tiger Oats Limited) bought out Imperial Cold Storage and the company was folded into its portfolio of brands and companies.

References

Other references

* Knowles, Lilian Charlotte Anne & Knowles, Charles Matthew. (1936
"The Economic Development of the British Overseas Empire, Volume 3"
Routledge, USA & Canada, republished in 2005, pg 195 * Graaff, De Villiers. (1993) "Div Looks Back: The memoirs of Sir De Villiers Graaff". Human & Rousseau, Cape Town. * Simons Brooke, Phillida. (2000) "Ice cold in Africa: The history of the Imperial Cold Storage & Supply Company Limited". Fernwood Press, Cape Town.

External links

Messrs. Combrinck & Co.'s New Cold Storage Depot (The Cape Town Guide 1897)

Messrs. Combrinck & Co.'s New Cold Storage Depot (The Cape Town Guide 1897) cont.

Photograph of The Produce and Feather Market Building, Dock Road, Cape Town 'Picturesque South Africa', 1899

COLD STORAGE IN SOUTH AFRICA (Extract from 'Otago Witness', 8 October 1902)
{{Authority control Meat companies Defunct companies of South Africa Food and drink companies based in Cape Town Food and drink companies established in 1830 1830 establishments in the Cape Colony Food and drink companies established in 1899 1899 establishments in the Cape Colony Companies disestablished in 1998 1998 disestablishments in South Africa Food and drink companies disestablished in 1998 Meat packers