Dina Farms secures financing for dairy expansion

The expansion plan includes two main components: the purchase of new cows and the completion of the state-of-the-art milking stations that will accommodate the new herd. Dina Farms will be importing 2,000 top-quality pregnant heifers from the United States in two phases. The first shipment of heifers is due to arrive in October 2012 and the second shipment will follow in the third quarter of 2013, once the construction of the new facilities is complete.

Dina Farms is a portfolio company of Gozour, Citadel Capital's multi-category agriculture and consumer foods platform.

"The construction of a new milking station usually takes close to a year to complete, but to save time and money the Dina Farms livestock team is fast-tracking the project to complete by mid-2013," said Dr. Mohamed Waeer, the Managing Director of Gozour's livestock business within Dina Farms.

With more than 13,000 head of cattle (of which 6,000 are currently milking cows), Dina Farms is Egypt's largest dairy producer and a key supplier of fresh produce both locally and regionally. In addition to its own highly successful, premium brand of fresh milk products the company also provides milk to leading local producers of processed dairy products.

Dina Farms branded milk products come from a PET fresh pasteurized milk plant that was inaugurated in February 2010. The milk plant completed the doubling of its capacity within its first year of operation allowing it to add new SKUs to its existing product range. In January 2011, Dina Farms launched a single-serve pack in addition to its leading 1-liter flagship pack. Yogurt production at Dina Farms has also increased to 40,000 cups per day from an initial 300 cups per day.

Less than two years from its launch, Dina Farms stands as the number-one fresh milk brand in Egypt.

The EGP92m syndicated loan facility is being provided by Al-Ahli United Bank, Egyptian Arab Land Bank and the United Bank.

"This loan to finance the expansion of our dairy facilities comes at a crucial time. We are currently witnessing a market that is suffering from an undersupply of milk, which has led to a recent increase in factory prices. The country as a whole needs new investments in dairy farms. An increase in our dairy capacity will help to offset the imbalance and close the import gap," said Hanee Afia, CEO of Gozour's Integrated Dairy Business.

In late 2010 Dina Farms launched a new chain of retail stores that sell the company's full range of high quality dairy products, produce and meats to consumers nationwide. In just two years the retail outlets have expanded to include seven stores in the Greater Cairo Area.