Citadel Capital (CCAP.CA on the Egyptian Exchange), the leading investment company in Africa and the Middle East with US$ 9.5 billion in investments under control, announced on February 5th that its core agrifoods Platform Company, Gozour, has achieved operational milestones that include record milk production at Dina Farms and a management restructuring that will maximize synergies for its food processing group. In an effort to push forward with the progress that has already been achieved with Gozour's food processing group, industry veteran, Ahmed El Rashidi, has been appointed to head a portfolio that includes leading Egyptian confectioner Rashidi El-Mizan, juice and dairy producer Enjoy, cheese manufacturer ElMisrieen and Sudanese confectioner, El Musharaf. The move is part of an overall restructuring of Gozour's food processing business that aims to capitalize on synergies between the companies. "Having Gozour's food production companies managed under one umbrella will be of particular benefit when it comes to distribution. We will be able to leverage Rashidi El-Mizan's strong distribution muscle for Enjoy and ElMisrieen," said El-Rashidi. A new turnaround strategy is currently being formulated that will enable Enjoy and ElMisrieen to compete effectively with the major players in their respective categories. "Enjoy and ElMisrieen are very strong brands in the market and we have no doubt that we can replicate the same success that was achieved at Rashidi El-Mizan with these two household names," El-Rashidi emphasized. Dina Farms, Egypt's largest dairy producer, continues to achieve record raw milk production north of 200 tons per day. Milk production is expected to peak at 230 tons per day in March 2014. In 2013 the company added 2,400 milking cows to its herd bringing total herd size to 15,000, including 9,000 milking cows. "The increase in herd size is a part of a comprehensive dairy expansion program that includes the addition of international-standard milking stations that will see us increase our overall raw milk production to 72,000 tons per annum in 2014 from the 60,000 tons per annum that the farm produced last year," said Hanee Afia, CEO of Dina Farms Group. Afia added that Dina Farms will focus on solidifying its position as Egypt's leading producer of fresh bottled milk while expanding its retail reach in the delta and canal regions. "We expect to grow our sales by more than 20% in 2014, with a total retail market share north of 65% in the fresh bottled milk category," said Afia. Citadel Capital has an effective ownership stake of 43.25% in Gozour. Agrifoods is one of five core industries in which Citadel Capital invests alongside energy, transportation, mining and cement.
