By mid-January of 2021, the Osool Poultry Company of the Sultanate of Oman is scheduled to start production of hatching eggs. The first chicken hatchery in the country, it aims to help raise food security, and reduce reliance on imports.
As its project nears completion, the Osool Poultry Company says the first of its farms is ready to begin production in the coming weeks.
When complete, the farm will produce broilers and 150 million hatching eggs a year for poultry farmers in Oman and various export markets, reports Oman News Agency (ONA). A joint project with many partners, main aims of the company are the raise self-sufficiency and food security in the Sultanate.
The chairman of the board of directors of Osool Poultry Company described the project as “one of the mega and unique projects in the Middle East.” Mohammed Suhail al-Shanfari explained that it will contribute to the government’s policy goals on economic diversification, governorate development, and job creation.
Osool Poultry Company was set up with total capital of 61.5 million rial (OMR; US$160 million) from multiple partners in Oman and foreign investors. It covers an area totaling 47 square kilometers (18 square miles) at Al Ghaftain in central Oman. On three plots, there are six breeder units (with a total of 72 poultry houses), as well as 144 houses comprising 12 rearing units. Offices and other administrative buildings are located on a fourth plot at the site.
More on Osool Poultry
According to Arab Authority for Agricultural Development and Investment (AAAID), the firm was established in 2016. With initial capital of OMR28.86 million, main shareholders were Gulf Investment Corporation (26.68%), A’Saffa Food Company and Alnmaa Poultry Company (each with 20%), and AAAID, 17.76%.
As well as the farm facilities, Osool Poultry also has a feed mill with a capacity of 20 tons per hour. Additionally, its slaughterhouse can process up to 7,200 birds daily, and there is a waste treatment unit.
Two months ago, Times of Oman reported that A’Saffa Foods had increased its share in Osool Poultry to 23.46%. Explaining the move, A’Saffa’ CEO said that Osool is the first integrated project in the Sultanate to produce hatching eggs.
Overview of Oman’s poultry industry
Over recent years, chicken meat production in Oman has risen gradually from around 6,400 metric tons (mt) in 2015 to an estimated 6,700 mt in 2019. Data comes from the statistics arm of the United Nations’ Food and Agriculture Organization, FAOstat.
Over the same period, FAOstat data indicate that the value of the country’s chicken meat imports have fallen from around US$208 million to US$180 million per year. There has been no clear trend in the imported volume, with amounts ranging from 107,000mt to more than 121,000 mt over this period.
Meanwhile, chicken meat exports have declined from 19,700 mt in 2015 to less than 8,900 mt last year.
Oman’s top poultry companies
According to Ministry of Agriculture statistics cited by government news agency ONA in May of this year, 129,000 mt of broiler chickens were produced in the Sultanate in 2018.
At the time of the report, the challenges of the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic were at their height. To meet growing local demand for poultry meat, two poultry companies reported increasing production.
With annual production previously at 21,000 mt, the CEO of A’Saffa Foods said daily output was being raised to 80,000 birds.
In 2019, Dhofar Poultry reached almost 8,000mt in chicken sales, according to its CEO. Plans were already in place to expand production further to 100 million birds per year.
With annual slaughterings of 20 million and 7.6 million birds, respectively, A’Saffa Foods and Dhofar Poultry are among the largest poultry companies based in Oman, according to the WATT Poultry Top Poultry Companies database.
