Dubai Investments subsidiary Marmum Dairy Farm, buoyed by a healthy annual growth rate, has announced an export focus across the Gulf and Middle East as part of an aggressive growth strategy.

The company’s gross revenue recorded a compounded annual growth rate (CAGR) of 9.8 per cent between 2004 and 2013, while gross volumes achieved a corresponding CAGR of 7.9 per cent in the same period.

The dairy achieved growth of over 133 per cent over the last 10 years and is looking at doubling the sales turnover in five years to reinforce its position as one of the prominent dairy firms in the Gulf.

In its efforts to push overseas sales, Marmum, which was acquired by DI in 1996 and marks its 30th anniversary this year, has already begun distributing its longlife juices to Iraq and plans to expand its footprints to Oman and Qatar by boosting its fleet and distribution network.

The company has grown from one product category, milk, and today produces and supplies popular items such as fresh milk, flavoured milk, fresh yoghurt, fruit juices, Proactiv laban (buttermilk) and laban cool in natural, fenugreek, cumin, cucumber and mint flavours. To mark the milestone, it plans to unveil new products and flavours, driven by its strong emphasis on quality, innovation and freshness in line with customers’ preferences.

SUCCESS HAILED

Kalban: investments paying off

Khalid Bin Kalban, managing director and CEO of Dubai Investments, said: “Over the last 30 years, Marmum has witnessed amazing growth and today plays an active and influential role in the UAE food and beverage industry. When it started, it was one of the pioneers in the UAE dairy industry, and a flag-bearer of a local company making its mark in the FMCG sector. Now, we are planning to expand our footprint in export markets as part of our aggressive growth strategy across the Gulf and Middle East.”

He added: “DI has achieved unprecedented success with its investments over the years. The decision to invest in Marmum was part of our strategy to strengthen our presence across diversified businesses and the impressive returns underline our strategic vision. We are adaptable to market dynamics and keen on developing our facilities and products to emphasise our high quality and innovation.”

As part of its strategy to increase its market share in the UAE, the company plans to add new sales routes for fresh dairy products and four new routes across Dubai, Sharjah and Abu Dhabi for long-life variants. The company aims to enhance its focus on hotels, restaurants, catering and retail channels. Marmum also plans to increase the distribution of its dairy products from the existing 3,000 outlets across the UAE to 4,000, which will boost its sales by 15 per cent and increase its market share by over 10 per cent.

Marmum’s annual production is 27.5 million litres and the company enjoys a clear market leadership in the fresh yoghurt category, especially among retail and catering channels in the UAE.

HEALTH AND ENVIRONMENT

Spread across 100 hectares on Al Ain Road, the Marmum farm uses the most modern, safe and hygienic manufacturing process ensuring that Marmum milk is totally untouched by human hands right from the milking stage to bottling. Marmum freshness is made accessible to the consumers through a structured approach for control and safety.

The company has over 3,500 Holstein cows of Dutch and Australian origin and is committed to offering nutritive, safe and hygienic dairy products through improved attention on animal genetics, reproduction protocol and advanced farm management. It ensures that its fresh dairy products reach UAE retail outlets in less than 12 hours from the time of milking.

Over the last few months, Marmum has launched products which offer healthy options and are not primarily commercially-driven. All these products are rich in vitamins A, D, E and K2, mainly focused on improving, developing and maintaining a balanced diet and healthy living. It is also in the process of introducing new flavours in the categories of juices, laban and flavoured milk.

Marmum has consistently received recognition for maintaining high standards of technology and output. The company has also undergone the Hazard Analysis Critical Control Points (HACCP) audit and holds the food safety certification from Dubai Municipality. In February 2014, the company successfully achieved the ISO 22000:2005 food safety award.

In line with Dubai Investments’ objective to reduce its carbon footprint, Marmum has signed up with a Germany-based company to build and operate the UAE`s first bio-gas plant. Marmum will be using its animal waste to have it converted into usable energy to be used for its captive consumption. In the process, the company will prevent the emission of 300 tonnes of harmful greenhouse gases to the atmosphere per annum.