Baladna Food Industries, Qatar’s largest producer of fresh dairy, is all set to enter the lucrative fruit juice market.

The Qatari company is expected to launch juices in the local market by the end of this year, reported The Peninsula.

The company is currently in the process of setting up a factory for production of juices.

“The new factory will be ready in the third quarter. There’ll be production lines in the new factory. So, by the end this year, we’ll be in the market with juices,” Baladna CEO Peter Weltevreden told The Peninsula.

Baladna’s decision to foray into the juice market is good news for local consumers. Not only will consumers get more options, it will also be a significant step towards making the country self-sufficient in fruit juices.

Currently, the sector in the country is serviced by local as well as  imported products.

The new factory is expected to have a capacity of 100tonnes per day.

Baladna is moving forward in the field of dairy products and is expected to provide 100% fresh milk to the Qatari market by Ramadan 2018, while covering over 70% of the demand for dairy products by the end of the year.

The company is also expected to venture into the fresh chicken market by next year, once infrastructure development is complete.

Baladna has also recently been preparing for an Initial Public Offer (IPO) at the Qatar Stock Exchange. The IPO will help Baladna expand its product portfolio through investments in poultry farms, juice and fertilizer production.

Picture for representational purposes only.