"Molvest" will supply alfalfa to the Arabian Peninsula
The 38th agricultural exhibition "Saudi agriculture" was held in Riyadh on 21-24 October. The largest industry exhibition of the country was held for the first time with the participation of the Russian stand – five domestic companies – manufacturers of confectionery products, flour, meat and animal feed - were presented at it. The company "Molvest" brought to the Arabian Peninsula premium feed from alfalfa. Minister of environment, water resources and agriculture of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia Abdulrahman al-Fadli personally welcomed the Russian exhibitors and expressed hope that economic relations between our countries will develop and strengthen.
Saudi Arabia is the largest country in the Arabian Peninsula. It initially had difficult conditions for the development of agriculture due to the influence of tropical dry and hot climate. Nevertheless, poultry and animal husbandry are developing in the country; the transition from traditional feed to compound feed is gradually being carried out. The expansion of cattle breeding, caused by a rapidly growing population, acts as a driver of the growth of grain imports. The country is increasing imports of livestock. Thus, in the first seven months of this year, more than 4 million heads of cattle were imported to Saudi Arabia through the port of Jeddah (according to the Saudi ports Authority). This is 21 percent more than in the same period last year.
"Saudi entrepreneurs show genuine interest in our product", said Elena Ponomareva, Deputy General Director of “EcoKorm” (part of the group of companies “Molvest”). - We held dozens of negotiations, and signed an agreement of intent with one of the companies. The main issue that needs to be resolved in the near future is the reduction of logistics costs. In the newly opened market, transportation prices remain high. We also have to compete with American and European companies that were the first to enter the KSA market".
The biomass drying plant (a division of the company – LLC "EkoKorm") in the village Nikolaevka of Anna district of Voronezh region aimed at the needs of the foreign market of elite feed long ago. Countries of Europe, Asia and the Arab world are being considered.
Last season, the company satisfied the internal needs of "Molvest" in alfalfa and pelleted grass flour. The surplus products were sold to other regions of Russia. The key goal of the first months of operation of the plant was to work out the main production processes in order to produce alfalfa in accordance with international standards for the new season.
The specialists of the company managed to achieve a bale density twice as high as the usual indicator for Russia - up to 450 kg / m3. The weight of the bale is about 800 kg. The height and width correspond to the parameters accepted in Europe (0.8 m and 1.2 m), and you can set any length.
"The high density and the ability to vary the length of the bale ensure the profitability of international transport. In other words, we don't pay for air logistics, which would be inevitable at fixed sizes. Now we will tightly fill different capacity containers - a car truck or a sea container. At the same time, possible changes in the volume of the bale, for example, a slight swelling during transportation by sea, are taken into account", explained Vladimir Manuilov, General Director of LLC "EcoKorm".
Russian alfalfa shows a first-class protein content - 22%. This result is worthy of the world market of premium feed. To enter the international feed market, the plant has also established the production of dehydrated alfalfa. It is a valuable feed with a high content of carotene and protein, which is well digested and has a positive impact on animal health and key performance indicators. Milk yield increases by 12%, weight gain of young rabbits, cattle - up to 15%, egg production of birds – by 15%. At the same time, feed costs are reduced to 10 and even 20%.
It is interesting to know:
For the last four years, the volume of mutual trade and the number of joint projects between Russia and Saudi Arabia have been growing. Four years ago, there began the partnership between the Russian direct investment fund and the Saudi sovereign wealth fund PIF, during this period of time, according to RDIF, $10 billion of long-term capital was attracted to the Russian economy, more than 30 joint projects are being implemented. The volume of trade in monetary terms is influenced by oil prices, but in recent years it has been growing. If in 2016 the trade turnover amounted to $491 million, the next year it almost doubled - $918 million, and in 2018 it exceeded the psychological mark of $1 billion - $1.05 billion.
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