The sanctions imposed by Saudi Arabia and other Arab states on Qatar have come as an opportunity for Mohamed al-Kuwari and his Al Rawa brand of yoghurt to make a bigger impact in the market. With competing Saudi products off the shelves, his business is booming.
“Our sales doubled! There’s lots of production as you can see and we have a big share in the market now,” said the 30-year-old dairy factory owner.
Last week, Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Egypt and Bahrain imposed an economic and diplomatic boycott on Qatar. The measures disrupted imports in Qatar, which bought most of its food from the neighbours that imposed the blockade.
Now, Qatar’s own mostly small consumer businesses say they are finding new suppliers, which could alter established trading patterns in the Gulf.
Plastic and cardboard that al-Kuwari’s company uses to make packaging are stuck in containers in Dubai, he said.
“We were stunned at first. Our supply of raw materials was completely cut off,” he said. “But we took action.”
Al-Kuwari says he will terminate contracts for raw materials from the Dubai-based conglomerate JRD International worth QR30mn ($8.21mn) a year. Instead, he is forging deals with Turkish, Indian and Chinese companies to secure future supplies that will be shipped to Qatar via ports in Oman and Kuwait.
,Gulf Times