The Algerian Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (MADR) and the Qatari company Baladna have signed a contract for the creation of integrated dairy farms and the production of milk powder in the Wilaya Adrar region of Algeria. Participants in the project include the Algerian National Investment Fund (FNI) and other parties, and production has been expanded to include infant formula. The joint venture that will manage the project will be owned 49% by the FNI and 51% by the Qatari side, while the financing of the project, worth $3.5bn, will be joint, with 51% coming from the joint venture and 49% from loans from Algerian banks.
The project, which covers a total area of 117,000 hectares, consists of three clusters, each containing a grain and animal feed farm, a cow breeding farm with milk and meat production and a milk powder factory. The project will be implemented in four phases, with the first phase starting in 2026 and the last phase taking place nine years after the start of the project. Around 194,000 tons of milk powder are to be produced annually as part of the project. In the ninth year of the project, the total number of cattle will be 270,000 and almost 1.7bn litres of milk will be produced annually.
