just-food | 3 January 2018

China's Drex Food 'to invest in Belarus dairy farms'

 

By Simon Harvey
 

China's Drex Food Group is said to be investing US$400m in dairy farms and milk processing facilities in Vitebsk Oblast in Belarus.

 

An agreement was reportedly signed in December between Drex Food's president Dai Shiwei and Nikolai Sherstnev, the governor of Vitebsk Oblast. 

 

Drex Food was founded in 2008 and is the largest dairy firm in China's Henan province with a herd comprising 21,000 cows. As well as milk, the company produces beef and tea, and is listed on the national stock exchange.

 

Construction is said to start this year and will be completed within two years. The first phase of the project will be to build a farm for 20,000 cattle with a target to increase the herd to 50,000. Drex will produce its own goods at the plant as well as products for companies in Belarus. 

 

As part of the agreement, firms in Vitebsk will have the opportunity to export their products to China.