MUSCAT: Omani Bio-Products Company is preparing to launch work on its animal feed and aquatic seafood project at Khazaen Economic City with an investment of around RO 37 million planned in three phases.
A tender for the construction of the plant, issued in June this year, has attracted bids from nine local companies. An award for the construction contract will be announced before the end of this year. Equipment for the plant has already been arriving, the project’s promoters said.
Conceived in line with Oman’s food security goals, the project aims to benefit from agricultural and biological by-products, transform them into specialized value-added products, and recycle date by-products, which include date kernels, pulp, and palm fronds.
Omani Bio-Products Company will produce about 100,000 tonnes annually of alternative grass feed made from agricultural residues enriched with dates, and about 300,000 tonnes annually of marine life feed such as shrimp and fish farmed in cages.
The project will use locally available raw materials to cover the needs of newly established food security projects in the field of red meat, dairy products, aquaculture and marine agriculture, in addition to serving the export market.
According to Haitham bin Shakhbout al Saadi, Vice Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Omani Bio-Products Company, the project contribute to achieving the goals of the “Oman 2040” Vision by employing the concepts of the circular and bio-economy and taking advantage of the raw materials available in the local environment and using them to produce a group of products, such as animal feed, aquatic seafood and their raw materials in an economical, sustainable and environmentally friendly manner.
Omani Bio-Products Company was established in partnership between the Nakheel Oman Development Company and the Omani Mills Group, which are affiliated with the Oman Food Investment Holding Company group. It is a model of joint work between companies owned by the Oman Investment Authority, as it works in strategic partnership with the Omani Environmental Services Holding Company “Be’ah” and with the support of Ministry of Agricultural Wealth, Fisheries and Water Resources. (ONA)
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