R2 billion disappeared into thin air at an important South African company

ActionSA MP Alan Beesley said that a R2 billion investment disappeared into thin air at Daybreak Foods due to mismanagement and corruption.

Beesley shared his views following the Standing Committee on Finance oversight visit to Daybreak Foods on 28 April 2026.

The Standing Committee on Finance’s oversight visit focused on investment projects of the Public Investment Corporation (PIC) in Limpopo and Gauteng.

Daybreak Foods, in Bela-Bela, Limpopo, is currently under business rescue after the PIC invested over R1.6 billion in the poultry company.

Before the company was bought by the PIC, it was rated among the top poultry producers in the country.

However, after the acquisition, it experienced financial distress due to poor financial controls, irregular expenditure, fraud, and corruption.

The Public Investment Corporation is now financing the business rescue process with the hope of reviving the business, which created thousands of jobs in the area.

Some of the early interventions by the Business Rescue Practitioners (BRP) were scaling down operations and retrenching over 2000 workers.

The company also suspended its Chief Financial Officer (CFO) and is trying to raise capital through strategic equity partners.

The Standing Committee on Finance described the collapse of Daybreak as horrible and disappointing, and called for action against those responsible.

Committee Chairperson Joe Maswanganyi said it was unfortunate that such an important investment project collapsed due to fraud and corruption.

“There must be consequences. It cannot be that such an important company collapses and no one is held accountable, and the workers’ money just disappears,” he said.

ActionSA MP Alan Beesley slates what happened at Daybreak Foods

ActionSA Member of Parliament, Alan Beesley, was part of the Standing Committee on Finance’s oversight visit to Daybreak Foods.

Daybreak Foods was one of South Africa’s top poultry producers operating across Gauteng, Mpumalanga, Limpopo, and KwaZulu-Natal.

The company was originally part of Afgri, a major agricultural services group, and its operations included the entire poultry value chain.

This enabled the company to deliver fresh-frozen chicken products to the local market, employing over 3,400 South Africans.

At peak capacity, the business could produce approximately 9 million birds per 34-day cycle, making it one of the largest poultry producers in the country.

The PIC acquired Daybreak Foods for R1.19 billion in 2015, saying it aligned with its mandate to support socio-economic development and transformation.

Over the next decade, the company declined until it collapsed to such a level that it could not feed its chickens.

In April 2025, the National Council of the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (NSPCA) had to cull over 350,000 chickens.

These chickens were based on various farms operated by Daybreak Foods and left without feed for days, leading to cannibalism.

In June 2025, Daybreak Foods officially entered voluntary business rescue after years of financial distress, operational failures, and governance issues.

“When the PIC invested in Daybreak Foods 10 years ago, it had annual revenue of R3.8 billion and employed over 3,000 people,” Beesley said.

“Today, the company is a shadow of its former self. It hardly has any revenue, and it now employs only 300 people.”

“It is sad to witness this value destruction through pure corruption. The PIC invested over R2 billion into Daybreak Foods, and the money is gone.”

The DA wants accountability regarding the Daybreak Foods scandal

The Democratic Alliance (DA) has also raised concerns about the issue and has written to the Chairperson of the Portfolio Committee on Employment and Labour.

It requested that the Unemployment Insurance Fund (UIF), Compensation Fund, and Public Investment Corporation (PIC) appear before Parliament.

They want these organisations to account for their continued use of public funds in the failing entity, Daybreak Foods.

This followed confirmation that both the UIF and the Compensation Fund have each extended an additional R150 million to Daybreak Foods.

The UIF and Compensation Fund initially invested R400 million each in 2016 to purchase Daybreak Foods.

Nearly a decade later, they have not made any return on this investment. Instead, the loans were converted into equity.

“Today, their investment is effectively worthless. The company is in business rescue despite having received more than R1.4 billion in support over time,” the DA said.

“This raises an important question: why are entities entrusted with safeguarding workers’ contributions continuing to inject funds into a collapsing business?”

“Parliament must now intervene to ensure that every rand entrusted to these institutions is protected and used in the best interests of the South African public.”