Oman plans projects worth $620m to strengthen food security

Oman Food Investment Holding Company (OFIC) will be investing around $620m in three projects that include the construction of dairy, poultry and red meat factories.

Mazoon Dairy Company, which was recently established by OFIC, is already in the process of building a $258m dairy farm centralised processing plant in the Wilayat of Al Sinaina, Al Buraimi Governorate. The dairy farm, which will begin operations by 2017, will initially have 4,000 milking cows that will be later increased to a total of 25,000 .

Products produced under the proposed dairy project will be marketed under the brand ‘National Pride’, and an estimated 400 direct and indirect jobs are to be created.

The project will produce fresh milk, fresh juice, mineral water, laban and yogurt.

The poultry project, named ‘An Naama’, will be established in Ibri and will help in the production of 60,000mt of poultry meat every year, three times the current capacity of Asaffa Foods.

The current poultry in Oman is able to meet 30% of the country’s requirements, meaning Oman has to depend on imports for the remaining 70%.

OFIC is also working on a project to enhance the production of red meat in the country. According to plans, the company will establish slaughter houses in Salalah, and will procure sheep and cows from Tanzania and Sudan.

Currently, only 20% of the country’s demand for red meat is met through local produce, and the remainder has to be imported.

Times of Oman had previously quoted OFIC chief of follow-up and studies Salim bin Saif Al Abdali as saying: "We need to increase it to more than 50% in the future. Our objective is to invest in projects that will ensure food security for the country."