NADEC Foods, one of the leading food, dairy and beverage companies in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA), has inaugurated its new Research and Development (R&D) Innovation Center in Haradh City, Saudi Arabia. The state-of-the-art center will serve as a hub for the development of new products, packaging, and processing for NADEC's businesses throughout the region. The fully equipped center will replicate NADEC's current production and evaluate new processes, products and formulas. The center will help develop innovative and high quality products that will meet the needs of both the local and regional food markets. NADEC in recent years has developed and launched a number of new products, including Ayran laban, flavored milk, new juices, and a range of cheese products, designed specifically for the Saudi market that have contributed to the year on year revenue and share growth. “The new Haradh based R&D center is a significant investment for our business and will help fast-forward NADEC's innovation process across the entire product range,” said Eng. Abdul Aziz Mohammad Al Babtain, Managing Director, NADEC. “This investment will further enhance NADEC's scientific and technological expertise in dairy foods and beverages and help continue to develop innovative, healthy, nutritious and great tasting products for our consumers and ensure the highest quality standards for all products.” The new center is the latest addition to NADEC's R&D capabilities. It will employ a full team of scientists, technicians, and engineers with expertise in all areas of food processing, formulations, and packaging. The facility will also provide a full range of capabilities to address food research, product development, shelf life studies, and product evaluations all aimed at enhancing our product offering. “NADEC is committed to developing competitively superior food products that delight our millions of customers around the region,” said Patrick Satamian, CEO of NADEC Foods. “This new center focuses on the development and utilization of internal talent and resources to build a strong technical team that is relentless in its pursuit of creating innovative products based on the latest nutrition research, market research, and an in depth knowledge of consumer trends.” During the last three years, NADEC grew at a rate of 20% annually and its solid growth is expected to continue in the coming few years as the Saudi economy continues to expand. — SG
