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How did Qatar’s dairy take a turn towards self-sufficiency following the blockade?

by Zeest Marrium and Haregewoin Mehari

The road towards Qatar’s self-sufficiency following the blockade.

Following May 2017 relations between Qatar and its diplomatic alliances in the Gulf severed leading to the “blockade”. It was after the blockade that Qatar’s imports came to a halt and the country was in crisis. It was a time that Qatar had to take stand for its inhabitants which resulted in the creation of Baladna. Today Baladna is not only a company but a matter of prestige for the entire nation. Visit our Instagram to unveil the truth.

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1/5 Two years back, Qatar's dairy was entirely imported, but something happened, which pushed Qatar to produce self-sufficient milk on its own land. 2/5 Accused of violating the 2014 agreement with the members of the Gulf Cooperation Council, Qatar experienced a diplomatic crisis following June 2017. It is when the members of the GCC snapped their alliances with Qatar, resulting in the historical diplomatic "blockade." The blockade proposed a ban on the Qatari airplanes and ships from utilizing their airspaces and sea routes. With no planes or ships to or from the GCC members acted as a foreshadowing of the impending crisis in the country. 3/5 Soon one after another, the attempts of negotiation failed, resulting in a prolonged phase of disrupted imports. It should be noted that Qatar used to rely heavily on imports prior to the blockade. In fact, around 90% of food supplies were imported from the members of the GCC. Therefore, the frequency of the imports dropped drastically. The country which used to import almost all of its milk and other dairy products from Saudia Arabia soon had empty shelves in the supermarkets within two months into the blockade. Despite Qatar's attempts to increase imports from Iran and Turkey, the products reaching the country were just not enough to meet the citizen's requirements. It was time that Qatar had to take a step towards self-sufficiency. 4/5 The country, which is house to a population of 2.64 million, decided to take stand for its people. With the dairy supplies cut off from external sources, Qatar chose not to rely but to produce milk on its own to suffice the demands of the inhabitants of the country. 5/5 Following the suspension of diplomatic ties, Baladna was launched with the state's support to expand and rapidly produce cow's milk for the country. No one discerned that just within two years into the blockade, Baldna would emerge as Qatar's largest locally owned dairy and food producer. The company, which began with 3,400 cows, is now home to 21,000. Having attained self sufficiency, Baladna aims to increase exports to other countries.

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Located 31 miles away from the city in Al Khor is the Baladna factory and farm, which opened its doors in May 2017. The farm, which was house to only 3,400 cows two years back, now contains 21,000 livestock. In order to investigate deeper, we had a conversation with the Director, Mr. Tariq Khalid Yammoot. He said, "Baladna was created to satisfy the Qatari market with fresh milk to basically negate the idea of using processed milk powders. The company aims to provide something which is wholesome and pure in every aspect. The first few thousand cows brought by plane and ship were all pregnant. They reached here when they were three years old so that they give milk and later give birth to calves. Now we have 21,000 cows that lie between 2 and 4 years old. The male and the female cows are separated as the female cows produce milk while the male cows are significant for their meat." Just two minutes away from the farm is the Baladna park. Within two years into the blockade, Baladna has transitioned from just being a factory to the nation's pride, which ensures the value of customers for the company. Be it the animal zoo or the other thrilling activities, the park provides a fantastic opportunity for the visitors to escape from the daily mundane. Lets see what Eslaed Bici at Karaki has to tell us about the people visiting Baladna Park. Eslaed said," We use a lot of products from Baladna because it is simply amazing. Usually, people ask us if we use rainbow or Baladna, and when we tell them that we use Baladna in our dishes and drinks, they simply love it." Baladna did what no one could think of. It continues to be a symbol of self-reliance, self-sufficiency, and the entire nation's pride.

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Khalid Walid Bibi, a Director and Professor at Qatar University, had some insightful information regarding the blockade and its impact on Qatar's dairy in particular following the crisis. Mr. Walid is amongst the expatriate population that witnessed not only the blockade but also its effects on the people and the country as a whole. In conversation with Mr. Walid, he said, "The acute effects of the blockade were not accounted for, and therefore, the country was unprepared for the repercussions. I was here in Qatar immediately before the blockade as, during that year, I was working as a consultant so I would fly in and out. Within my first month of the visit after the blockade, I went to carrefour, and it was obvious that the impact of the blockade was very palpable to the people. As there was one kind of product from a particular country missing from the shelves. As I walked passed, I clearly remember how empty the refrigerators were. I went back to the US, and when I came again, four months after the blockade, the first thing I see is that Baldna is everywhere. The wonderful thing about Baldna is that it's not simply providing a product consequent to the blockade, but the fact that they tied that with patriotism has simply made it the nation's pride. This was a spinoff in which Qataris learned self-reliance. There's something special about consuming your own product and being self-sufficient, and this wouldn't have been possible the highly competent Qatari government."

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Kaiser Hamid set his foot in Qatar in the year 2013 and has been working as an assistant head chef at Royal Chapati restaurant for the last four years. Hamid begins his day preparing the early breakfasts, through to the busy lunch hours, and finally ends his day cooking and serving the guests at dinner. As we talked to Hamid about his daily routine, he mentioned how Baladna has evolved from just an ingredient to a symbol of prestige for him and other people of Qatar. Hamid said,"We used to use milk even before the blockade, but after the blockade, something changed. I still remember the first time when we brought Baladna to our restaurant. That was a moment of prestige for us. Back then, we used Baladna out of compulsion, but today we use It because of Qatar's pride and hence a matter of prestige for us".

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In conversation with Illyas Bin Abdullah, the owner of a grocery store at gate 3, he said,"After Saudia Arabia suspended the supply of the dairy products, we could not find milk in the city. The people were scared in every aspect as know one knew what was to happen further. Many people used to visit my store every day in the hope of finding milk, but being the victim of the situation myself, I had to return them empty-handed. Soon after three months into the crisis, one day, we saw trucks flooding the city. The trucks supplied cartons of milk to stores. This was the first time we came across "Baladna." At first, people bought Baladna's products just out of necessity as that was the sole option for milk in the city, but with time the company gained the trust of its consumers through its premium quality and prices. Today Baldna is the most widely sold dairy product in the entire country, and this is the reason that I can't even think of substituting Baldna with any other brand in my store. For me, Baldna is a ray of hope. When everything seemed disrupted in the country, Baladna brought with it not only stability but pride and confidence for the country and its inhabitants. Today Qatar is known for its bold step toward independence that couldn't have been possible without the creation of Baladna".

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