Kraft Foods inaugurated on Tuesday its $40 million state-of-the-art manufacturing plant at the Bahrain International Investment Park (BIIP). Kraft Foods Bahrain WLL began the construction of the facility in January 2007. Top Kraft Foods executives were present during the occasion, including Maurizio Calenti, group vice president, Kraft Foods & president of Kraft Foods Eastern Europe, Middle East and Africa; and Patrick Satamian, vice president and area director, Middle East and Africa. The ISO certified manufacturing plant, which boasts the latest food manufacturing technologies, quality control and safety systems, heralds significant growth opportunities for Bahrain's economic landscape including the creation of more than 250 jobs, an increase in skilled labor and a more robust local supply chain system. The new plant is expected to pump $120 million per year in wages, raw and packaging material and operations. Satamian said “the Middle East and Africa are important markets for Kraft Foods. The Bahrain plant opening gives us a competitive edge in growing our market share in this region as it will enable us to meet consumer demand more efficiently and quickly.” The 60,000 square-meter factory began production late last year for Kraft Foods' cheese and powdered beverage products, including flagship brands Tang, Kraft Cream Cheese Spread and Kraft Cheddar Cheese. It will supply products for all Middle East and Africa markets, which is estimated to be around 60,000 tons per year. Kraft Foods is one of the world's largest food and beverage companies, with 2007 revenues of more than $37 billion. For more than 100 years, Kraft has offered consumers delicious and wholesome foods that fit the way they live. Kraft markets a broad portfolio of iconic brands in more than 150 countries, including nine brands with revenues exceeding $1 billion: Kraft cheeses, dinners and dressings; Oscar Mayer meats; Philadelphia cream cheese; Maxwell House coffee; Nabisco cookies and crackers and its Oreo brand; Jacobs coffees, Milka chocolates and LU biscuits. Kraft is listed in the Standard & Poor's 100 and 500 indexes. The company is a member of the Dow Jones Sustainability Index and the Ethibel Sustainability Index. Kraft has been present in the Middle East for over 40 years with the area's regional office based in Vienna, Austria. As part of Kraft's commitment to the Middle East and Africa, its thorough understanding of its consumer base in this region and the continuing rise in demand for its products, Kraft today has six manufacturing plants that cater to millions of consumers across the region. __
