| (image) Fahad al-Khalaf |
Speaking to local Arabic daily Arrayah, he informed that the company, which recently won the 'Best SME of the Year’ title at the Rowad Qatar Awards 2021 organised by Qatar Development Bank, is in the process of establishing a third fish production plant that will be opened in less than a year.
The award was achieved due to the great success that the company witnessed in record time in addition to meeting all the award criteria, with the official stressing that the State supports small and medium projects, and the private sector as a whole.
"The company is currently exporting its production to both Oman and Kuwait. We plan to expand to the rest of the Gulf countries, especially as our products have won the admiration of consumers and become competitive with international products," he added.
The project was established according to the highest levels of quality and the best equipment were selected for the factory. Gradually, production was intensified and the operation of new production lines expedited to meet the demand for meat products in the country.
"We had to align our operations for local and international ISO certification in terms of production and quality, and then we won the Rowad Qatar Award. That’s how the company emerged from 2017 to 2021," he recalled.
The company started by producing relatively small quantities - amounting to some 30 types of meat products - and today the factory churns about 400 items. "Our production capacity went from 20 to 60 tonnes, and today, it has reached 1,000 tonnes per month. It is being marketed in Qatar and exported to Kuwait and Oman for nearly two years, up to 25 containers of 20 tonnes each per month," al-Khalaf said.
"The company has a share of 50%-plus in the local market, and our products are in every hypermarket and supermarket. We have established a factory for the production of frozen meat. Another fresh meat factory will be operating soon, and we are expanding animal and poultry farms for it," the CEO noted.
Al-Khalaf said they are currently working on studies to expand outside Qatar in the Gulf region. New factories are currently being established to complement the current one. Over the next two years, two factories will be operated to produce fresh red and white meat and fish. These will include the first factory to produce canned and frozen processed fish, which will be exported.
Fish farms have been established, including a shrimp farm where production will begin within a few months. The factory will produce six types of processed fish that will be used in fast food, for the first time in Qatar.
“We are currently studying the establishment of factories, similar to the one in Qatar, in Iraq and Oman, as well as farms to contribute to achieving food security for these countries. Also, memoranda of understanding and partnerships have been concluded with Kuwaiti and Omani companies for food production, due to the quality and competitive prices of our products,” concluded al-Khalaf.