Koudijs Kapo Feed recently celebrated the opening of its first fish feed factory in Egypt. With this new ultra-modern production facility, Koudijs Kapo Feed further enhances the company’s ambitions to strengthen its position in Egypt. The new factory, located on a 12,000-square meter area in Borg Al-Arab, Alexandria, is considered to be one of the biggest fish feed producing plants in Egypt, with a production capacity reaching 150,000 tons a year.
Attending the inauguration were Joost Geijer, Head of the Economic Department and Agricultural Counsellor at the Dutch Embassy in Cairo, and James Bret Tate, Agricultural Attaché of the US Embassy in Cairo.
Alaa Kamar, one of the founding partners of Koudijs Kapo Feed, said that Egypt’s trend towards developing fish resources by establishing 4,000 new ponds to raise fish in Ismailia was one of the main reasons for establishing the new fish feed factory. This investment was made to meet the increasing demand expected for fish feed in Egypt.
Kamar said, “Our partnership with the Dutch international and family-owned feed-producing company Royal De Heus gave us additional experience which allowed us to gain a huge market advantage in Egypt, given that De Heus enjoys more than 100 years of experience in the animal nutrition market, alongside its ownership of factories in 14 countries worldwide. De Heus’ products have been marketed in more than 50 countries, which increases the export opportunities for us as well,” he added. “De Heus has been expanding rapidly in the fish feed market. De Heus has established itself as a leading company in fish feed production in Asia and Africa. Our partnership with De Heus means we are able to support Egyptian fish farmers in getting the best results.”
For her part, Yasmine Kamar, Project Manager of the new fish feed factory, said that the new feed produced will achieve the highest growth rates for farmers, beginning at the hatchery stage when fish weight is less than ten grams, and up until fattening and harvesting stages are completed, when fish weights reach more than 350 grams.
Ms. Kamar added that the factory’s products will be offered at competitive prices with high quality, conforming to international standards, while focusing on innovation and development to achieve continuous success and to secure far better profitability for the farmers. The commitment to quality is demonstrated through both its ISO certifications (ISO 22000 and 9001). Additionally, Koudijs Kapo Feeds’ products will be distributed nationwide through authorized dealers and distributors, to guarantee that products reach farms as quickly as possible. She pointed out that the company has established new silos and a warehouse with major storage capacity, to maintain raw materials and final products with adherence to high safety measures.
Koen de Heus, CEO of Royal De Heus, expressed his pleasure at the inauguration of the new factory, describing it as a major addition to Koudijs Kapo Feed. He said, “The investment in this factory comes at an important time in the development of the Egyptian aquaculture sector and the Egyptian economy in general. We believe strongly in the future of Egypt. The country will have many mouths to feed in the future. Egypt will need to make sure that it produces enough food that is safe, affordable and of good quality. To do that, many new investments must be made. We see it as our task to bring new knowledge to Egypt in order to further increase fish production there.”
Koudijs Kapo Feed has acquired extensive experience in the feed industry over three decades, as the outcome of the partnership between Kapo for Agricultural Projects, specializing in the importation of raw materials for feed production, and De Heus of the Netherlands, specializing in manufacturing and exporting various concentrates and feeds. The partnership resulted in the establishment of Koudijs Kapo Feed, which has been producing a range of feeds and concentrates (poultry, duck and cattle) since 2003, and it has built itself into a leader in the Egyptian market, as one of the market’s top 10 players, producing an average 120,000 tons of feed a year.
