SAUDI ARABIA: Giant Saudi chicken farm set for expansion.

Record ID: 188878

  • Title: SAUDI ARABIA: Giant Saudi chicken farm set for expansion.
  • Date: 13th December 2011
  • Summary: BURAIDAH, QASSIM PROVINCE, SAUDI ARABIA (RECENT - DECEMBER 7, 2011) (REUTERS) VARIOUS OF LIVE CHICKENS HANGING UPSIDE DOWN ON AUTOMATED MACHINE, READY FOR SLAUGHTER VARIOUS OF WORKERS MANUALLY SLAUGHTERING CHICKENS, IN LINE WITH ISLAMIC LAW CHICKENS HANGING ON AUTOMATED MACHINE, HEADING FOR CLEANING AFTER BEING SLAUGHTERED (SOUNDBITE) (Arabic) DR. MOHAMMED SULAIMAN AL-RAJHI, GENERAL MANAGER OF AL-WATANIA POULTRY, SAYING: "We slaughter manually, according to Islamic law. After slaughter the work is then automated, such as cleaning the entrails. Weighing and packing is semi-automated." VARIOUS OF CLEANED CHICKENS HANGING ON AUTOMATED MACHINE, HEADING FOR PACKING CLOSE OF WORKER PICKING UP CHICKENS TO BE PACKED WORKERS PACKING CHICKEN PRINCE FAISAL BIN BANDAR AL-SAUD OF AL-QASSIM PROVINCE INAUGURATING THE NEW EXPANSION PROJECT AT AL-WATANIA POULTRY AL-WATANIA POULTRY LOGO MARBLE SIGN FOR THE NEW EXPANSION PROJECT IN ARABIC (SOUNDBITE) (Arabic) DR. MOHAMMED SULAIMAN AL-RAJHI, GENERAL MANAGER OF AL-WATANIA POULTRY, SAYING: "The expansion that we celebrate today means that we are in the process of increasing production from 575,000 birds per day to over 840,000 birds per day as a first stage in the expansion in addition to a million eggs." AUDIENCE (SOUNDBITE) (Arabic) DR. MOHAMMED SULAIMAN AL-RAJHI, GENERAL MANAGER OF AL-WATANIA POULTRY, SAYING: "This project is the largest of its kind in the Middle East and is one of the mega-projects worldwide in the field of poultry and food production." DR. FAHAD ABDULRHMAN BALGHUNIAM, SAUDI MINISTER OF AGRICULTURE (LEFT) AND SAUDI BILLIONAIRE SHEIKH SULAIMAN AL-RAJHI (RIGHT) LISTENING TO SPEECH. (SOUNDBITE) (Arabic) PRINCE FAISAL BIN BANDAR AL-SAUD, PRINCE OF AL-QASSIM PROVINCE, SAYING: "There is no doubt that this project and all its elements will lead to overall food security for the nation."
  • Embargoed: 28th December 2011 12:00
  • Keywords:
  • Location: Saudi Arabia, Saudi Arabia
  • Country: Saudi Arabia
  • Topics: Economy
  • Reuters ID: LVA9IKLKVNVXI0W43M5AB9W91YSE
  • Story Text: The biggest poultry farm in the Middle East has recently been expanded with the aim of producing a million chickens and over a million eggs everyday. All profits from the farm have been earmarked for charity.
    A new project to boost production in what is said to be the Middle East's biggest poultry farm was launched on Wednesday (December 7), creating more jobs and boosting the local economy.
    The expansion will also benefit local charities, as all of al-Watania's profits are earmarked for charitable institutions.
    Al-Watania Poultry covers a vast 200 square kilometres of land in Saudi Arabia's Qassim province, 350 kilometres northwest of the capital Riyadh. Around 6,500 people work there.
    The farm prides itself on its ethos of being self-sufficient, with the chickens fed naturally on feed grown at the poultry farm and killed in line with Islamic law.
    "We slaughter manually, according to Islamic law. After slaughter the work is then automated, such as cleaning the entrails. Weighing and packing is semi-automated, " said general manager Dr. Mohammed Sulaiman al-Rajhi.
    Al-Rajhi's family own and run al-Watania. He talked about the goals of the three-year, three-billion-Saudi-riyal (800-million-USD) project.
    "The expansion that we celebrate today means that we are In the process of increasing production from 575,000 birds per day to over 840,000 birds per day as a first stage in the expansion in addition to a million eggs," he said.
    "This project is the largest of its kind in the Middle East and is one of the mega-projects worldwide in the field of poultry and food production," he added.
    One of the project's unique aims is to increase the number of women in the workforce.
    At the moment, al-Watania employs 300 women, but are hoping to boost this number to 1,000 in three years.
    Prince Faisal Bin Bandar Al Saud of Qassim province was present to unveil the commemorative marble slab at the inauguration of the expansion project, and showed his support.
    "There is no doubt that this project and all its elements will lead to overall food security for the nation," he said.
    Prince Faisal toured the premises along with Saudi billionaire Sheikh Sulaiman al-Rajhi, who, along with other family members, owns the poultry farm.
    The pair and their entourage were joined by Saudi's minister of agriculture, Dr. Fahad Abdulrhman Balghuniam.
    They were shown around one of the production plants, where the chicken meat was turned into different products such as chicken burgers and sausages.
    "The production of chicken in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia is less than 50 percent of consumption, which means we import more than half of what we consume. Poultry projects don't use up a lot of water, so it is a good investment, both for big investors such as National Poultry and regular farmers," Balghuniam said.
    All of Al-Watania's profits have been designated as "Waqf," earmarked for charitable institutions.
    This is part of Sheikh Sulaiman's move to donate most of his seven-billion-USD fortune to charity.
    A classic rags to riches tale, Sheikh Sulaiman is now one of the richest men in the world, after having founded the al-Rajhi Bank, an Islamic financial institution, in 1957.
    Al Rajhi Bank is Saudi Arabia's biggest bank and is the biggest Islamic lender by market value.
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