She emphasized her commitment to teamwork and communication with employees and partners

"National Food Products" faces "Corona" with flexibility and electronic platforms

The company has applied high standards in the health and safety sector.

From the source

The National Foodstuff Company stated that it faced the repercussions of the Corona pandemic with flexibility and switching to electronic platforms, as well as the speed of procedures, noting that the pandemic is a different lesson for business sectors, whose effects will be positively reflected in laying out plans for future projects.

She stated to "Emirates Today" that it was keen on commitment to team work, and continuous communication with its employees and partners to confirm the continuity of its business and inform them of developments, explaining that its sales increased through Internet platforms by up to 75% during the period of national sterilization and closure in light of the precautionary measures to confront Corona ».

The Executive Director of the National Food Company, Iqbal Hamza, said that the company relied on several mechanisms and policies to face the repercussions of the Corona pandemic, most notably flexibility, the shift to electronic platforms and the speed of procedures.

Hamzah indicated that there are important factors that helped the company to deal successfully with the repercussions of "Corona", including continuous communication between management and employees, as the company was keen to communicate with its employees and partners to confirm the continuity of its work and notify them of developments first-hand, noting that open days are organized from time to time. To hear what employees say and what they aspire to be.

Teamwork

Hamzah stated that focusing on the element of commitment to teamwork is one of the most important characteristics that the company was keen on during the period of the peak of the pandemic, confirming the company's conviction that the individual is part of a work team, regardless of the department to which he belongs.

He added that everyone has one goal, which is to facilitate production processes and achieve the desired results, especially during this period, pointing out that the flexibility element on which the company relied has appeared since the beginning of the spread of Corona.

And Hamzah added, "We learned from the pandemic the necessity to transfer our services and sales to be online to be fast and safe, as we noticed and observed a rise in demand that reached 75% through various online platforms during the closure and sterilization period compared to previous periods."

Adaptation to changes

Hamzah considered that these factors contributed greatly to the company passing the difficult stage of the beginnings of the emergence of "Corona" and adapting to its changes, noting that “since the spread of the virus, the safety and health of our employees has been our top priority, as we have implemented a number of precautionary measures, including working from home, in addition to To establish a number of temperature checkpoints in the company.

He stated that the company has applied high standards in the health and safety sector, including sterilizing the manufacturing units and checking them on a regular basis while examining products well in terms of quality and safety before they are authorized to leave.

He said, “In addition, we have made manufacturing and logistics operations with the least amount of human intervention, as well as speeding up production lines (within the new industrial complex in Khalifa Industrial City) in order to meet consumers' growing needs for food and beverage products, and we have also worked to strengthen home delivery fleets. To meet the growing demand ».

Strict procedures

Hamzah added that the company has implemented strict preventive measures, so that everyone who visits its offices must go through a set of steps to ensure the safety of the guest, in addition to the fact that he is required to disclose his health status.

He pointed out that an order-making service has been launched via the company's online application or call center, with the aim of facilitating and speeding up product ordering across various platforms.

Hamzah explained that the company's strategy relies heavily on focusing on technology and innovation, which is implemented through production plans with the brands of its products, which include the brands of "Lacnor", "Oasis Water", "Gulf and Al-Safa" and "Melco". And "Royal Pickers", and "Aqua Water."

He considered that “the (Covid-19) pandemic was one of the unexpected events and a difference in the business sectors in general,” saying: “We have learned a lot from it and this will be reflected positively on our future project plans.”

Consumer behaviors

Hamzah believed that the way business is conducted in the markets in general will not return to its previous era, because patterns must change with the shift in consumer behavior.

And he indicated that the company observed three changes that occurred in consumer behavior: The first is the focus of spending on the basics due to the current conditions, while the second change represented the shift of a large number of consumers to digital services, as in light of the social divergence policies imposed by Corona, the consumer became preferred. Using digital platforms to buy products.

As for the third change, Hamza indicated that it focused on the fact that several segments of consumers have become more focused and keen to scrutinize the quality and safety standards of products, and to purchase products that have passed the various stages of quality and health safety checks, which made the company implement plans concerned with digital communication with consumers, and a statement What we do to ensure the safety of their products.

Hamzah pointed out that consumers are looking very much during the current period for more transparency and guarantees that brands must provide, which is one of the market changes at the global level.

New products

Hamzah revealed that the company is working during the current period to launch a number of new products soon, but he referred to the launch of several new products during the first quarter of this year, including "Lacnor Smoothie", "Lacnor Milk" and "Lacnor High Protein Milk".

He added that during the same period, the company also launched innovative products from Oasis water in the form of cardboard water bottles, which are environmentally friendly and sustainable containers, and are made of biodegradable and recyclable materials.

He indicated that the main material used in the containers used in water products is cardboard, which is made of wood, which is a renewable material.

Export increased

The Executive Director of the National Foodstuff Company, Iqbal Hamza, said that the company is currently exporting its products to 40 countries, indicating that the company intends to increase the export rates during the coming periods, to increase the geographical area of ​​the countries whose exports reach, pointing to the company's focus during the current period on the market But he stressed that the export is important for the company and it is keen to increase it.

He added that the company supplies more than 50% of the country's population with its products, which vary between drinking water, milk, juices, and baked goods, explaining that the list of these products includes a group of brands including: “Oasis water”, “Blue sparkling water”, “Juices and milk. Lacnor, “Laban Up,” “Gulf and Al Safa Dairy,” “Milco Juices,” and “Royal Pickers” bakery.

He pointed out that these products are available in supermarkets and through home delivery, which witnessed a high demand recently.

Investments and stakes

The Executive Director of the National Foodstuff Company, Iqbal Hamza, stated that the company owns an industrial complex with investments amounting to 1.3 billion dirhams, and extends over an area of ​​750 thousand square meters in the Khalifa Industrial Zone "Kizad", and includes industrial units, stores and offices, pointing out that the new complex is developed and enhanced. With the latest technologies that will enhance and accelerate production, storage and distribution processes with high efficiency.

He explained that the company's products acquire a high market share in the two categories of heat treated milk and "milk up", reaching 80%, while that percentage reaches 60% for flavored milk, and on the water level, its market share is about 45 %.

To view the topic in full,

Iqbal Hamza:

• “We learned from the pandemic the necessity of transferring our services and sales to be via the Internet, so that it is fast and safe.”

• “The company observed three changes in consumer behavior, most notably the focus of spending on fundamentals.”

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