«Baladna» covers the needs of the dairy market

Saba Al-Fadala, Director of Public Relations and Communications at Baladna Food Industries Company, said that the company intends to continue to invest actively to build a solid foundation for a strong industry in Qatar, pointing out that Baladna currently meets the needs of the Qatari dairy market through its market share of today. (95% fresh milk, more than 50% in dairy and yogurt). The company has also recently expanded its long-term and juicy milk market.
Al-Fadala explained in a special dialogue with Al-Watan that the siege imposed since June 5, 2017, has pushed local entrepreneurs in Qatar to rise to the challenge and support the state by all possible means. Self-sufficiency and food security have therefore become a major objective for Qatar. “Our country is in a good financial position in view of the company’s net present value and profitability indicators. There are very ambitious plans to launch new products this year. Preparations are currently underway to launch evaporated/condensed milk products soon,” he said. Consumers in the local market, like all the products of our country that preceded it, have great quality and competitive prices.
To what extent do you think you have achieved your goal of contributing to the needs of the local market and achieving self-sufficiency in Qatar?
– The blockade imposed on Qatar since June 5, 2017, has driven local entrepreneurs in Qatar to rise to the challenge and support the state by all means possible. Since then, self-sufficiency and food security have become a major objective for Qatar, and food production has been an important part of it. The dairy sector in Qatar is a very dynamic sector with continued growth due to its contribution to the health and well-being of the community. The dairy sector has evolved over the years and is now able to meet the different needs of consumers.
We are proud to inform you that we are currently meeting the needs of the Qatari dairy market by 100%. This is evident in our market share today (95% of fresh milk and more than 50% in the dairy and yogurt sector). We have recently entered the long-term and juicy milk market, and we are also now launching evaporated/condensed milk products.
{How much investment in our country to date, including all products, enterprises, etc.?
We have invested heavily in the local market and will continue to invest actively to build a solid foundation for a strong industry in Qatar.
You recently announced the launch of locally produced evaporated milk in Qatar. What do you think the market will react to? What is the expected volume of production?
– We believe that it will be similar to the positive reaction of the market on all our products, all our products rely on fresh milk and produced locally at very competitive prices. Our manufacturing frameworks are adapted to the needs of the local market. The Qatari market needs evaporated milk and we have the task of achieving self-sufficiency in this area. We are very excited about this step and are proud to be the first company to produce evaporated/condensed milk products here in Qatar.
{Why do you release evaporated milk with fresh milk / UHT milk? Which three types is best for health? Do you see great demand in the market?
– Evaporated/condensed milk has different uses from fresh and long-term milk, where condensed milk is used mainly in cooking and is also used to add milk, tea, coffee, and other hot drinks. Evaporated milk is used in a wide range of Arabic sweets. Due to the responsible nature of our lives, it is convenient and easy to use the product. Due to the high demand for this product, we decided to proceed with its manufacturing.
Therefore, evaporated milk is one of the main products, and we are currently focusing on it due to the high domestic demand and the current domestic dependence entirely on foreign brands. We hope to proudly launch this product with the phrase ‘Made in Qatar’ very soon.
{Does our country have any new products to be put on the market this year?
– We have very ambitious plans this year. One example is evaporated milk, and we work 24/7 to ensure it is released as planned. We will continue to announce more plans in due course.
Have you noticed the preferential treatment of national products on the ground by consumers, hotels and various authorities in the country?
– National products have emerged as a savior especially after the siege, they are more competitive in quality, source, availability, and price. For example, if you have to choose between dairy products made only from fresh milk, or other brands that make their products from recycled milk and import them by land and air (cuttering thousands of kilometers), which one would you choose?
{During the first quarter of 2019, you started exporting products to Afghanistan. How successful have you been? Why was Afghanistan a potential market? What products did you start exporting?
– Exports are part of our expansion strategy and we aim to expand our regional presence. We are currently considering several options to help us achieve this.
{Is the company profitable underspending on high-quality projects?
– Given the company’s net present value and profitability indicators, I am pleased to inform you that our country is in a good financial position.
Do you think that national products will win the competition against imported products?
– We firmly believe that national products will succeed in the long term, especially when they provide outstanding quality and use excellent resources.
{How many products and types do you have? What is the actual daily production volume of each species and future target production?
– We fully cover the dairy sector in general

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