Al Ain, January 27, 2010: Al Ain Farms for Livestock Production—the first established dairy in UAE and a leading producer of dairy products—has been awarded the ISO 22000 Certificate in a ceremony held today at the Abu Dhabi Fund for Development.  In attendance were Mr. Mohammed Saif Al Suwaidi, Chairman of Al Ain Farms for Livestock Production and Mr. Alex Smith, Director, SGS Gulf Limited along with other key representatives from both organizations.

The ceremony began with a speech from Mr. Al Suwaidi who talked about Al Ain Farms’ continuous efforts to meet international standards and the importance of the award in strengthening the position of Al Ain Farms in UAE and the region.

“Receiving the ISO Certificate is a true testament to the company’s continuous efforts to provide its customers with the best quality products which meet the highest national and international standards,” commented Mr. Al Suwaidi.  “We are confident that with the improvement of our product lines and the introduction of new technologies, we will be able to set the standards for the industry in UAE and the region.”
 
“In the last year, the market has definitely placed a greater emphasis on health and safety”, added Mr. Al Suwaidi. “As customers put more effort into determining the value of their consumer choices, we want them to know that Al Ain Farms will never compromise on the quality of their products.  Throughout all aspects of our operations, we’ve worked to achieve complete quality management by investing in our equipment, our farm herd, and most importantly in our employees. We are and will always be committed to inspiring the highest levels of consumer confidence in our products and services.”

In order to secure the ISO certificate, Al Ain Farms had to pass various tests and examinations.  This included planning, implementing, and maintaining a Food Safety Management System to work across the company’s operations.  Al Ain Farms also had to demonstrate compliance with all applicable statutory and regulatory food-safety requirements in the UAE.  This involved assessing customer requirements and effectively communicating food-safety issues to Al Ain Farms suppliers, customers and relevant interested parties.

In addition to the ISO certification, Al Ain Farms was also recently eligible for the PAS 220 Food Safety Certificate, which endorses the proactive development of pre-requisite programmes on food manufacturing safety.

Record production of over 10,000 Rolling Herd Average litres per cow in 2009

Mr. Abdullah Saif Al Darmaki, CEO of Al Ain Farms for Livestock Production

Al Ain Farms for Livestock Production, the first established dairy farm in the UAE and a leading dairy producer in the region, Read the full story

New flavours guava and pineapple launched in stores throughout the UAE

Al Ain Dairy, the first established dairy farm in the UAE and a leading producer of dairy products, has increased its juices product line by introducing two new juice flavours, guava and pineapple, to complement its existing range of six fruit juice products.  The new flavours are now in stores throughout the UAE and are offered in different packaging sizes.   The juices are made from fresh juice concentrate with no added preservatives or sugars.  The guava flavour is produced from fruits grown in Egypt while the pineapple comes from fruits harvested in Thailand. Read the full story

Two new machines valued at AED 4 million increases Al Ain Dairy’s capacity of yoghurt and fermented products by 40%.

Eng. Abdullah Saif Saeed Al Darmaki CEO, Al Ain Dairy

Al Ain Dairy, the first established dairy farm in the UAE and a leading producer of dairy products, has purchased two new systems; a primodan rot-o min cups filling machine and a filmatic rotary bottle filling machine. Read the full story

Award recognizes the farms’ ability to control food safety hazards and ensure food safety

Al Ain Farms for Livestock Production, the first established dairy in UAE and a leading producer of dairy products, has been awarded the ISO 22000:2005 certificate for its ability to demonstrate its ability to control food safety hazards. Read the full story

Al Ain Dairy increases its workforce by 10% from 685 to 750 employees in 2009

Eng. Abdullah Saif Saeed Al Darmaki CEO, Al Ain Dairy

Al Ain Dairy, the first established dairy farm in the UAE and a leading producer of dairy products, has seen a 10 % increase in its number of employees since January from 685 to 750 employees. Read the full story

The Dairy and Fruit Juices Industry is expanding at a rate of 10 per cent annually and currently meets 56 per cent of the demand in the UAE, according to a recent study by the Department of Economic Development (DED), which identifies UHT juices and UHT milk as products that have great potential for export. In line with this, Al Ain Dairy, the first established dairy farm in the UAE and a leading producer of dairy products, has become one of the few dairy farms in the region to fully depend on its own herds of cows after it has launched a project, among its many activities, to minimize importing and boost local cow breeding with aims to increase milk production and further strengthen its leading position in the highly competitive market.

The Dairy and Fruit Juices Industry is expanding at a rate of 10 per cent annually and currently meets 56 per cent of the demand in the UAE, according to a recent study by the Department of Economic Development (DED), which identifies UHT juices and UHT milk as products that have great potential for export. In line with this, Al Ain Dairy, the first established dairy farm in the UAE and a leading producer of dairy products, has become one of the few dairy farms in the region to fully depend on its own herds of cows after it has launched a project, among its many activities, to minimize importing and boost local cow breeding with aims to increase milk production and further strengthen its leading position in the highly competitive market.

The Dairy industry is still expanding despite the global economic slowdown. With the existence of many dairy producers and the increase of competition level, the quality is increasing and the expenditure on the industry in terms of machinery, farms, labs, personnel and production is boosting. First launched the project in 2006, Al Ain has established and well equipped three farms to accommodate the first batch of cows which in three years have enriched Al Ain’s stock with more than 3000 milk producing cows that are currently supplying the country’s various outlets with raw milk products.

Despite of the current 26 operating cattle farms in the country which contain 15,000 cows producing 167,000 tonnes of fresh milk annually, the local market’s needs are still being covered by imported products.

Highlighting the huge demand for dairy products in the UAE, the local market faces an essential need to expand according to recent studies which have further recommended that dairy industry should research and develop new and differentiated products designed to meet specific needs and tastes of the local consumers as imports do not completely satisfy this demand.

Commenting on this subject, Eng. Abdullah Al Darmaki, CEO, Al Ain Dairy, said:
“The decision to grow our own cattle has been derived from Al Ain Dairy’s vision to be recognized as the preferred choice of dairy products for all customers and to become a self-sufficient plant that provides a 100 per cent locally manufactured products”.

“Amongst the many fears that have erupted following the spread of diseases among cattle, we have opted to grow our own herds following high levels of safety standards, with constant health inspections”, added Al Darmaki.

Cows have a 9 month gestation period after which they give birth and start producing milk, where each cow can produce up to 10000 liters annually. The original cows were imported from Australia, however, today Al Ain Dairy no longer import as the farm is able now to breed enough replacements on its own. Each farm has its own vet and helper to look after the cows, where cows are constantly diagnosed and treated.

To further improve milk quality and enforce health standards, Al Ain Dairy has recently purchased a Dhs.600,000 state of the art BactoScan machine, a revolutionary device that provides instant accurate and reliable bacteria count in unlike of the conventional methods that takes 24 – 48 hours.

Abu Dhabi, June 8, 2009
Al Ain Farms for Livestock Production, the first established dairy in UAE and a leading producer of dairy products, received today the prestigious Emirates Quality Mark Award by the Emirates Authority for Standardization & Metrology (ESMA).The award was handed to Al Ain Diary in a ceremony held at the Abu Dhabi Fund for Development in the presence of Mr. Waleed Bin Falah Al Mansouri, Director General of ESMA, and Mr. Mohammed Saif Al Suwaidi, Chairman of Al Ain Farms for Livestock Production, Acting directore Gneral of Abu Dhabi Fund for Development, along with other representatives from both sides.
During the ceremony Al Suwaidi praised the Al Ain Farms’ team for their continuous strive to meet worldwide standards and stressed the importance of the award in strengthening the position of Al Ain Farms for Livestock Production in UAE and the region, saying:
“Receiving the Emirates Quality Award is a true testament to the company’s continuous efforts to provide its customers with the best quality products which meet the highest national and international standards. We are confident that with the improvement of our product lines and introducing new technologies, we will be able to set the standards for the industry in UAE and the region and best serve our customers.”
Mr. Al Mansouri congratulated Al Ain Farms for Livestock Production for the award and praised the Authority’s endless efforts to support local companies in elevating their standards to worldwide calibers. The ceremony was later concluded by the award signing and trophy handing and a final thank you note by Mr. Abdullah Khamis, Board member and Acting CEO, Al Ain Farms for Livestock Production’s.
ESMA approved on granting the award to Al Ain Farms for Livestock Production after all the requested processes were finalized including checking the conformity of the milk and juices products with the approved standards, availability of an efficient system for quality assurance and quality control, technical discussion by experts, gap analysis, conformity evaluation inspection, testing & Calibration and submitting corrective actions.
Consequent to the Federal Law number (28) to the year 2001 to establish Emirates Authority for Standardization and Metrology, ESMA is considered as the authorized body in the United Arab Emirates to grant Emirates Quality Mark. The Quality Mark was issued to ensure the products comply with the approved standards and to give consumers confidence in the products that carry this mark and are circulated both locally and in external exports markets. The goal is to secure that those products are approved by an impartial body according to the producers issued in this system and approved by ESMA board, which makes them 100% healthy for consumption.
Most recently, Al Ain Farms for Livestock Production announced an 18 per cent growth in sales for the first quarter of this year and gross profits of 23 per cent in the same period compared to that of the previous year. Today, the farm owns three cow farms and one camel farm, in which the animals are raised, treated and milked using the highest techniques and through well trained, highly experienced professionals. The farm is constantly supplying raw milk products to provide the nation with a wide range of locally produced safe, hygienic and high quality dairy products. Furthermore, continual investment in technology and machinery are considered a key factor in ensuring that Al Ain Farms for Livestock Production has the most modern and efficient processing plant with a high volume capacity for production

Al Ain, May 18, 2009
Al Ain Dairy, the first established dairy farm in the UAE and a leading producer of dairy products, has become the first dairy farm in the GCC to install the BactoScan machine. Officials at Al Ain have revealed that the AED 600,000 machine is aimed at elevating the bacteria testing processes to the highest worldwide standards and will increase the quality control which Al Ain stresses as a key factor in its production phases.
By electronically testing the hygienic quality of milk and bacteria count in less than nine minutes, compared to the 24-48 hours with traditional methods, the machine offers an uncompromising approach to milk testing that is efficient yet accurate. Bactoscan works by separating the bacterial cells in a centrifuge and then staining them and then counting the bacteria in the raw milk electronically.
“In terms of performance and operational efficiency, the Bactoscan machine has already revolutionized how we do business. As the Bactoscan machine works by counting bacteria as single cells, we are now able to obtain results faster as well as being able to guarantee that the milk we produce in the UAE is of the highest quality and meets worldwide health and quality standards,” said Eng. Abdullah Saif Said Al Darmaki, CEO, Al Ain Dairy
Aside from the newly installed Bactoscan machine, Al Ain Dairy uses the Refractometer and Milkoscan to test its dairy products. Whereas the Refractometer can determine the sugar content of milk, Milkoscan can analyze the percentages of fat and lactose in milk.
Most recently, Al Ain Dairy has announced an 18 per cent growth in sales for the first quarter of this year and gross profits of 23 per cent in the same period compared to that of the previous year.
Al Ain Dairy has witnessed steady expansion from its early days. Today, the farm owns three cow farms and one camel farm, in which the animals are raised, treated and milked using the highest techniques and through well trained, highly experienced professionals. The farm is constantly supplying raw milk products to provide the nation with a wide range of locally produced safe, hygienic and high quality dairy products. Furthermore, continual investment in technology and machinery are considered a key factor in ensuring that Al Ain Dairy has the most modern and efficient processing plant with a high volume capacity for production.

Al Ain, April 28^th 2009

The first established UAE dairy achieves 23% growth in its gross operating profits. Al Ain Dairy, the first established dairy in UAE and a leading producer of dairy products, has announced that it has achieved an impressive 18% growth in sales for the first quarter of 2009 compared to the same period last year. Read the full story