One of South Africa’s largest bakeries gets cut off
The City of Tshwane disconnected the Albany Bakery in Waltloo this week, claiming it owed over R1 million in bills.
On Wednesday, 29 April, Tshwane mayor Nasiphi Moya thanked the Albany Bakery for honouring its debt, and noted that the city will reconnect the facility’s electricity.
However, in response to the mayor’s post, Tiger Brands, which owns the bakery, said the city’s and the mayor’s claims of unpaid bills were incorrect.
“The Executive Mayor published a social media post indicating that the Bakery’s power was disconnected due to the site allegedly being in arrears with the City of Tshwane,” Tiger Brands said.
“She later reported that power had been restored as the business ‘honoured its debt’. This information is in fact incorrect,” it added.
The group said it can confirm that Albany Waltloo Bakery’s account with the City of Tshwane has been in good standing and up to date since 10 April 2026.
Tiger Brands confirmed this with the municipality and provided proof that the account was up to date.
Following the correction of the municipality’s error, power to the site was restored on Wednesday, 29 April.
The company also added that it has since been in touch with the Mayor to ensure she corrects her statements.
The Albany Bakery Waltloo is a major production facility operated by Tiger Brands, producing fresh bread, rolls, and baked goods for South Africa and other regions.
Tiger Brands is South Africa’s largest manufacturer of fast-moving consumer goods (FMCG), with over 100 years of history and a wide range of iconic food, beverage, home, and personal care brands.
Headquartered in Johannesburg, it serves South Africa and exports to over 22 African countries, operating 34 manufacturing plants—including the Albany Bakery in Waltloo.
The Albany Bakery is considered one of the largest and most significant commercial baking facilities in South Africa.
Its disconnection forms part of a broader crackdown on unpaid municipal bills, with the city increasingly willing to act against both residential and commercial defaulters through its Tshwane Ya Tima revenue-collection campaign.
The municipality said the campaign is aimed at enforcing payment discipline across all categories of consumers.
“The Tshwane Ya Tima revenue-collection campaign seeks to disconnect services to defaulting clients who run up high service bills and fail to pay the City,” it said.
The city added that the initiative casts a wide net, targeting businesses, individual households, and residential estates alike.
Authorities have also warned that the campaign goes beyond simple disconnections. “Along with the disconnections, the City also imposes steep fines for meter tampering and illegal connections,” it said.
The city also warned that if customers are not able to pay their bills, they should come forward and make payment arrangements to avoid disconnection.
City-wide crackdown
The disconnection of the Albany Bakery follows the recent disconnection of a popular shopping centre in Pretoria.
On Monday, 20 April, Tshwane mayor Nasiphi Moya announced that the city had disconnected services to Heracles Prime Property, which includes the Jean Village shopping centre in Centurion.
According to Moya, the property owner owes the municipality around R3 million in outstanding bills.
In a separate operation, the city also cut services to a property in Akasia, which houses the Galpini Village apartments.
In that case, the owner owed the city R718,000, prompting the Revenue Protection Unit to cut its electricity supply.
In her recent State of the Capital Address, Moya said the metro has prioritised restoring financial discipline, rebuilding credible budgets, and strengthening internal controls.
Revenue collection efforts, including the Tshwane Ya Tima campaign, have been coupled with improvements in billing accuracy and attempts to rebuild trust with residents.
According to Moya, these interventions are starting to show results. Cash-backed reserves have grown significantly, rising from R835 million to over R1.9 billion.
However, the campaign has drawn criticism from opposition parties. The Democratic Alliance argued that the city’s overall performance has been dismal.
“Since 2024, revenue collection in Tshwane has dropped from 93% of billings to 83%. The Tshwane ya Tima campaign has been ineffective at redressing the situation,” the party said.
This article has been updated to include Tiger Brands’ response to the Mayor of Tshwane’s post on X.
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