Partners Traders Company seeks to inject new investments of EGP 80m to establish a new frozen fruits and vegetables factory, with the aim to increase the company's exports and upgrade the quality of its products. Mohamed El-Nashar, general manager of Partners Trade, said that the company achieved sales of EGP 70m during the first half (H1) of this year, and doubled its exports volume to reach total 2,400 tonnes. He added that the company has allocated 70% of the operating capacity of the company's current factory to manufacture other companies' products, while it kept only 30% to manufacture its own products. El-Nashar pointed out that the European markets account for up to 75% of the company's exports, while the rest go to other markets, adding that about 90% of the company's production is allocated for exporting, while only 10% is sold in the local market. The company is working to raise its sales in the Egyptian market after an increase in demand recently, which gives the company more confidence in offering larger quantities locally, he stated, adding that the Egyptian food industry sector witnessed a continuous growth over the past four years, in terms of investments and quality of production. Meanwhile, he highlighted that the new investments contributed to increasing the number of factories and production capacities in existing factories, and thus a greater ability to export to international markets. Moreover, the company seeks to benefit from the political rift among the countries, especially those competing the Egyptian exports, such as the problems between Russia and the European Union, and also between America, Canada, and Australia El-Nashar noted, and highlighted that the company targets increasing its exports to the Russian market in the coming period through signing more export contracts, revealing “this is the main goal of our participation in the WorldFood Moscow—a major international food and drink exhibition—this year.” This exhibition will enhance the Russian and European importers' confidence in the company and thus increase its annual exporting contracts, and also attract new customers to contract with the company in the next years, he asserted, elaborating that the Russian importers' demand for Egyptian products have quite increased in the past two years, and the company aims to benefit from this improvement, especially, in the frozen vegetable and fruits sector. He pointed out that the increasing demand for Egyptian frozen vegetables and fruits from Russia have contributed to increasing the cultivated fields inside Egypt to meet the needs of the Egyptian market and exports. El-Nashar said that his company exports its products to several countries other than Russia and the European Union, especially, in the Arab Gulf region, most notably the UAE and Saudi Arabia, and other geographical areas, such as Vietnam, Libya, USA, and Canada. He added that the company plans to enter new markets in East Asia in the coming years, and it is preparing to participate in an exhibition organised by China two months later for exporters from all over the world. China is currently promoting an idea that it is also an importer country, not only exporter. The exhibition will invite exporters from around the world and Chinese importers, noting that Chinese exporters will not be invited. He pointed out that the company will use this opportunity to meet new customers in Asia, and reach new agreements to increase its annual exports. He added that about 26 Egyptian companies will participate in the Chinese exhibition, considering it a good opportunity to identify the needs of Asian markets and determine the size of their needs. El-Nashar also stressed the importance of the US markets, benefiting from the Qualifying Industrial Zones (QIZ) programme between the two countries.
