The main purpose at that stage was to process their own maize that was produced by their farming activities. The original mill was very small with a capacity of only 1.5 tons per hour.
They immediately started a process of upgrading and extending the mill and in 1999 the capacity of the mill reached 7.5 tons per hour. Further upgrading was undertaken in 2004 and the existing structure was extended into a 5 story steel structure as well as upgrading of equipment in the mill. This project was completed by the well-known engineer Brian Legg and the capacity of the mill was increased to 13 tons per hour.
The upgrading and extending of the mill is a continuous process and during 2018 capacity reached 40 tons per hour.
Hominy chop is a byproduct of the milling process and in 2003 an animal feed plant was erected in order to make use of it. This facility was also continuously upgraded and extended and capacity was increased from 1200 tons per month to 13 000 tons per month currently.
Tau Mills is a private company owned by the Viljoen family of Leeudoringstad. The mill consists of a modern plant that produces maize meal of the highest quality and has a capacity of 40 tons per hour.
The animal feed plant produces a wide range of feed and uses the hominy chop that is produced as a byproduct of the milling process. The plant has a computerized control system that ensures that the feed meets the highest quality standards.
In mid-2018 construction started on a modern dog food facility and production started in January 2020. The facility has a production capacity of 700kg per hour.
Tau Mills is also proud to announce that after an in-depth study a soybean processing plant will be added to the existing animal feed plant. Our maize meal, animal feed, and dog food are distributed through our retail branches which have well-trained staff to handle all customer queries. Different areas also have representatives as well as technical advisers available to assist our clients.
The Soybean processing plant will enable Tau Feeds to produce its own full-fat soya cake as well as soya meal. It is also planned that part of the plant will put soya meal through an additional process to produce bypass soya meal. This product will greatly enhance milk production and tissue synthesis of cattle and sheep.
Construction of components of the plant is already in progress and the plant is expected to be in production by the second quarter of 2022.
Tau Mills has a network of more than 34 retail branches that is situated mainly in the North West, Free State, and Northern Cape.
As an additional marketing channel, we supply maize meal to wholesalers across South Africa.
Tau Mills has its own fleet of trucks that handles the distribution of our products. It consists of super links with a loading capacity of 34 tons to do the distribution from our factory and smaller trucks to do the distribution from our retail branches.
Our employees consist of roundabout 600 well-trained and motivated people that ensure the smooth running of all daily activities.
