Hassad Food has announced the launch of its newest initiative, Iktefa’, to provide support to unproductive local farms.
Such unproductive farms represent more than 80% of registered local farms in the country, and the initiative seeks to encourage their production, Hassad has said in a press statement.
Through this new initiative, Hassad will support local farm owners by purchasing their yearly production of vegetables and fruits, following clear commercial terms, and then sell them in the local market.
The move is aimed at enhancing the role of the local farms and efficiently utilising their commercial operations to support the local market demand from fresh produce, the statement notes.
Hassad Food is Qatar’s premier investor in the food and agri-business sectors.
Mohamed al-Sadah, Hassad Food CEO, said: “It’s our pleasure to be launching the Iktefa’ initiative. We hope that this important initiative will help build bridges of co-operation with local farmers.”
Hassad Food will provide the necessary support and services to the participating local farm owners to enable them to produce high-quality items for the local market, he adds.
As part of the initiative, Hassad will provide several services for the participating local farms. These include support in developing feasibility studies for the farms seeking financial support from the entities concerned to build greenhouses, supply of agricultural inputs - delayed payment for a period not more than 90 days, technical supervision for the farms, purchase of the farms’ yearly production from fresh produce under clear commercial terms agreed upon by both parties, and logistical support and other services.
Moreover, the company has announced that the targeted capacity for the first phase is around 60 hectares, producing around 5,000 tonnes of fresh items annually. This figure will increase gradually over the next phases, the statement points out.
Hassad has also announced that an internal committee has been formed to review and assess all submitted participation requests. Local farms that comply with the needed specifications will then be selected.
Hassad Food’s CEO noted that the launch is a continuation of the company’s constant efforts to support the local market demand by offering a number of strategic products on a daily basis via air freight and sea route to Qatar.
The range of high-quality items provided by Hassad include dairy products, table eggs, poultry, fresh vegetables and fruits from more than 10 countries, including Turkey, Kuwait, Azerbaijan, Oman and Lebanon.
“We co-ordinated with a number of corporations in friendly countries to provide the local market with a steady supply of high-quality strategic products in a cost-effective manner. Our first shipment arrived in Qatar on June 6, and since then we are supplying the market with daily shipments that are in line with the market need,” al-Sadah said.
Additionally, Hassad has developed a renewable strategic inventory that includes various important products.
“Through our partnership with Widam Food, Hassad Australia will provide the local market with more than 340,000 head of Australian sheep (chilled carcasses) over the course of three months, starting in June,” he added.
Hassad Food has invited the owners of local farms interested in taking part in this initiative, to communicate directly with the Iktefa’ committee through Hassad Food’s official website.
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