Press Release
VIS Upgrades Entity Rating of Golden Harvest Foods (Private) Limited
Karachi, November 26, 2025: VIS Credit Rating Company Limited (VIS) has upgraded the medium to long-term rating of Golden Harvest Foods (Private) Limited (‘GHFL’ or ‘the Company’) from ‘BBB+’ (Triple B Plus) to ‘A-‘ (Single A Minus), while the maintaining the short-term rating at ‘A2’ (A Two). The medium to long-term rating of ‘A-’ signifies good credit quality; Protection factors are improved. Risk factors may vary with possible changes in the economy. The short-term rating of ‘A2’ indicates good likelihood of timely repayment of short-term obligations with sound short-term liquidity factors. Outlook on the assigned ratings is ‘Stable’. Previous rating action was announced on November 14th, 2024.
GHFL was established in 2000 as a private limited company, with ownership exclusively held by the Ghulam Hussain family. The Company operates as a manufacturer and distributor of bakery products and frozen ready-to-eat meals under the well-known ‘Dawn Bread” brand, in the area of Sindh, governed under a family agreement, and nationwide and globally popular brand known as “Mezban”. Moreover, the Company is proactively managing its business risk by diversifying its products line and focusing on exports.
The upgrade in the medium-to-long-term rating reflects the steady decline in debt levels supported by the company’s ability to maintain healthy profitability. The management consistently invests in BMR to enhance production capacity while continuing to introduce new products largely through internally generated funds and intends to continue this strategy to contain overall risk levels.
Over the years, GHFL has evolved from being only a bread company to now offering a variety of food products. Along with the strong brand image of Dawn in Sindh, the company has capitalized on its brand name “Mezban” with overseas Pakistanis and has built a sizable export portfolio, mainly focusing on the Middle East & USA. The demand for bread industry is largely considered to be stable due to the nature of the product. However, the industry faced stress in FY25 due to government policies including price controls on products as well as higher export costs due to geo-political tensions. GHFL exhibited its resilience by maintaining its profitability despite pressure on the topline. The management was able to proactively control the cost structure and the company also benefitted from the reduction in interest rates along with reducing debt levels. Consequently, key financial metrics depicted improvement in FY25. The management’s assertion to maintain the conservative risk profile will remain a key consideration for maintaining the ratings in an industry which may continue to remain affected by intermittent price controls and developing geo political situations.
For further information on this ratings announcement, please contact at 021-35311861-64 or email at info@vis.com.pk
Applicable Rating Criteria: Corporates:
https://docs.vis.com.pk/docs/CorporateMethodology.pdf
VIS Issue/Issuer Rating Scale:
https://docs.vis.com.pk/docs/VISRatingScales.pdf