Baladna, the Qatar-based dairy group, has acquired another tranche of shares in Egypt’s Juhayna Food Industries.

In almost two years, Baladna has built a shareholding in Juhayna of more than 15%. Its latest purchase – of 600,000 shares on 26 June – took its stake from 10% to 15.03%. The shares cost E£7.4m ($239,000).

In a stock-exchange filing today (30 June), Baladna said it wanted to grow within Qatar and overseas.

“Investment decisions are based on very detailed analysis of the market,” the filing read. “[The] Egypt market, with a population [of] more than 100 million, is a large and promising food and beverage market. Being the market leader, Juhayna is expected to benefit most from the market growth with a strong distribution network.”

According to data from GlobalData, Just Food’s parent, Egypt’s market for dairy and soy food is forecast to be worth $5.07bn, up from $3.56bn in 2022.

Publicly-listed Juhayna produces and markets dairy and juice products.

The company, set up in 1983, has four production facilities.

In 2022, Juhayna generated revenue of E£11.36bn, up 29% on a year earlier. The company’s net profit stood at E£638m, 21% higher year on year.

In the first quarter of 2023, the group booked a 42% jump in revenue to E£3.4bn. Its net profit more than doubled to E£339m.

Baladna, based north of Doha, has three factories making dairy products, juices and packaging.

It posted a 27.5% increase in revenue to QR985.6m in 2022. However, the company’s net profit dropped almost 40% to QR80.6m.

In the opening three months of 2023, Baladna saw its revenue rise 6.3% to QR254.4m. Its net profit of QR20m was down more than 20% on the corresponding period a year earlier.

During the quarter, Baladna announced a deal to make The Laughing Cow cheese in Qatar for brand owner Groupe Bel.

Source : Just Food June 30th 2023