Tetra Pak Global has honoured its Saudi company with the accolade of ‘Market Company of the Year 2004.’

Tetra Pak Saudi Arabia won the award beating more than 55 Tetra Pak market companies, a spokesman for the Saudi subsidiary said.
To mark the occasion, Nils Bjorkman, Tetra Pak market operations president, visited the company.
“There are several factors that made Tetra Pak Saudi Arabia the company of the year including customer service, sales, and technical service,” Bjorkman said. “When we evaluate a company’s sales and performance we not only look at one year but also over the past three years on how it has improved.”
Tetra Pak Saudi Arabia is part of the Swedish Tetra Laval Group, the world’s leading supplier of processing and packaging solutions for food products, operating in more than 165 markets with over 20,000 employees and a turnover in excess of 7 billion euros.
 The company has been present in Saudi Arabia since the 1950s and has always regarded the kingdom as one of its most important markets. Tetra Pak Saudi Arabia established and inaugurated its factory in 1998, the first Tetra Pak “Greenfield” packaging development in the world, to incorporate both fibre and plastic technologies within one complex.
After another two years, and a total investment of $70 million, the company expanded its operations to spread over 43,000 sq m and opened the most technically advanced packaging factory in both the kingdom and the region.
This latest development allowed the company to recruit and train more local manpower resources. “Our policy is to invest, recruit and train local labour,” said Bjorkman.  Tetra Pak SA managing director Amar Zahid pointed out that 40 per cent of the company’s employees were now Saudis and that it intended to take the figure to 60 per cent in two years. “Some of our best employees are Saudis and I think one of the reasons for low foreign investment here is this wrong perception of Saudi labour,” said Zahid.
Tetra Pak runs various programmes to attract more local talent such as the recent Jeddah Technical College Apprentice Programme where 14 selected students are now being trained in the factory for potential jobs and another group will be selected soon. “Investing in the local labour market is good for business and here it has been a great success,” said Tetra Pak vice president for Greater Middle East, Francis Goodenday.
A large part of the factory’s production is being consumed in Saudi Arabia, but the company also exports packaging material to at least 24 countries around the Middle East, Europe and Asia. Tetra Pak Saudi Arabia produces both carton and PET packaging. It is now one of the best Tetra Pak factories in the world with the second lowest total waste. It is also the fourth largest producer globally.
The Jeddah carton factory is one of the few self-sufficient factories with its own power facility and water desalination plant in order to manage resources in the best way. Recycling of factory waste is managed through a series of environmental performance indicators. “Environment awareness is low here but growing. There is now a government agency concerned with the environment and putting laws and regulations which is part of our system,” said Zahid.
“Environment regulations add to our costs initially but we think of it as long-term investment and continue to invest in it,” said Bjorkman.
Worldwide, Tetra Pak actively supports environmental activities.
“We are a mid-size company and our competition includes glass bottles and cans but we want to give the best product that meets the customer’s needs as a whole package,” said Bjorkman.