Cargill JV Opens New Corn Milling Plant in Saudi ArabiaCargill JV Opens New Corn Milling Plant in Saudi Arabia

A joint venture between American agribusiness Cargill and Saudi food ingredients firm Arabian Agricultural Services Company (ARASCO) officially inaugurated Monday in Al-Kharj, Saudi Arabia.

Supporting food and beverage producers in Gulf Cooperative Countries (GCC), The Middle East Food Solutions Company (MEFSCO) Corn Milling Facility is the first investment made by Cargill in Saudi Arabia, the Minneapolis, MN-based firm said in a press release.

“The Middle East food industry is one of the world’s fastest-growing markets. The MEFSCO facility gives regional food and beverage manufacturers access to high quality, innovative products produced specially for them,” Cargill’s global leader for starches, sweeteners, and texturizers, Julian Chase, said in a statement. “ARASCO’s local knowledge and supply chain infrastructure were crucial in our ability to design a facility that best serves local market needs.”

MEFESCO’s Al-Khari plant will triple the joint venture’s total production volume and double its production of glucose and starch, according to the Cargill release. The plant will also produce high fructose corn syrup to serve the region’s confectionery industry and other food industry segments.

“In the Middle East, consumer awareness around food safety and hygiene is growing steadily. Cargill’s expertise in processing agricultural commodities into high-quality sweeteners and starch-based products will provide us our regional customers with an edge in making products that respond to this consumer trend,” said Ziyad Alsheikh, chief executive officer of MEFSCO, in the release. “Customers will be able to serve the market’s demand with products that MEFSCO will manufacture to the strictest food safety and hygiene standards in our state-of-the-art Al-Kharj facility.”

The joint venture was formed in 2013.

Click here for information about the upcoming International Powder & Bulk Solids Conference/Exhibition

For more news headlines, articles, and equipment reviews, visit our Equipment Zones