In the Beginning
The history of Kefalos starts in the 1960’s on a small Greek island by the name of Kefallonia. On this island lived Athanasios Milionis. In his early 30’s he started a business with the money he saved serving in the Greek army. His passion for good food led him to a decision that would change the dairy market on another continent: He decided to start producing cheese and set up a small factory in the town of Potamianata, where his family lived.
The Big Move
In 1967, Greece experienced a change of power that marked the beginning of a long period of unrest. In 1969 Athansios decided to emigrate to Africa with his wife and young son.
Settling in Zimbabwe
The family first settled in Zambia and in 1971 they moved to Zimbabwe (then Rhodesia) and settled in Harare (then Salisbury). Athansios started working in a coffee shop at night while tending to his passion of making cheeses during the day.
Growing in Chinhoyi
In 1975 he moved to Chinhoyi (then Sinoia) where he bought a cheese factory in the industrial area of town. This factory was named Kefalos a few years later – inspired by his home island, Kefallonia. The Kefalos cheese factory produced kefalotiri, feta, misithra (also known as ricotta) and smoked cheese. Soon the factory produced enough quality cheese to export to South Africa.
Harare
In 1993 Athansios’ production had expanded and he moved the production back to Harare. For a steady supply of milk they brought a Danish dairy farmer, Wolle Kirk, on board. With Kirk’s knowledge of breeding dairy cattle, Kefalos gained a supply of local, high quality milk, which is still the main ingredient in Kefalos’ products.
A New Discovery
With a growing local demand from Kefalos, the Kirk family continued the quest for a perfect dairy cow. Soon a new breed was developed: The Red Dane breed – a high yielding cow that adapted extraordinarily well to Zimbabwean conditions was paired with an indigenous breed called Tuli. The result was an exceptionally adaptable breed that thrived in savannah-like conditions and which still delivers the bulk of fresh milk to Kefalos.
Expanding the Cheese Line
The Kirk family bought Kefalos in 1993 and expanded the dairy farming as demand for quality cheeses grew. With expert assistance from Denmark – a country with a millennium old tradition for dairy products, the product range grew rapidly. Soon new cheeses were introduced and Zimbabweans could enjoy locally made gouda, cheddar and crème fraiche made by Kefalos.
Venturing into New Products
In the early 2000’s Kefalos added another line of products to its portfolio – ice cream. The ice cream was called Cortina. The equipment and the Cortina brand was bought from a Zimbabwean of Italian descent.
Expanding our Portfolio
In the mid-2000’s Kefalos introduced smooth yoghurt to the Zimbabwean market and Southern African region with great success.
Becoming a Super Brand
Since 2010 Kefalos has introduced high quality yoghurts with real fruit pulp, low-fat yoghurts and luxury ice cream. The rapid expansion continues with new products in the pipeline. As of today, KEFALOS and CORTINA stands as well trusted brands that Zimbabweans associate with consistent, premium quality.
Products Certification
All Kefalos products certified Halaal Certification by the National Halaal Authority of Zimbabwe.
Becoming a Regional Force
In line with our mission, “to be the leading dairy foods manufacturer in the region…” Kefalos has been steadily growing to become a regional force with exports into the Southern African region including Zambia, Malawi and Botswana. KEFALOS and CORTINA dairy products have found favour due to our flavourful products that meet exacting quality standards.
Expanding the Factory
Due to growing demand both locally and regionally, Kefalos increased the factory and warehouse footprint by 5500m2, creating more space for production, packaging, storage and distribution. Key dairy manufacturing processes, except cheese and ice cream production, is in the process of being moved to the new modular factory which was designed to European standards to allow for strict maintenance of the cold chain from milk delivery to product distribution. This development also gave way for new products manufacture in line with emerging consumer trends.
Setting Up a Solar Plant
Kefalos sets up a 600kWp solar plant to access renewable energy and limit use of non-renewable energy sources in the manufacturing process. The solar plant provides clean electricity to the factory and feeds the excess electricity generated into the national grid.
Began Exporting to Zambia
Kefalos partnered with a Zambian distributor, Epic Foods, to export dairy produce. Incorporated non-ice cream products to the Cortina brand and updated the logo from Cortina Dairy Ice Cream to Cortina Produce.