A state-of-the-art hatchery will soon start construction in Yangon, an important milestone for the SAPA project (Sustainable and Affordable Poultry for All) and for the poultry sector in Myanmar.

One of the important targets for SAPA project is to reduce the current unstable supply of Day Old Chicks (DOCs) and provide the farmers with the possibility to independently choose their feed and DOCs supplier. For this reason, a professional hatchery will be established by Bel Ga Myanmar in Myaung Dakar Industrial Zone, Hmawbi, Yangon.

Bel Ga Myanmar is 100% owned by BDH Azie B.V, a joint venture between Belgabroed and De Heus Animal Nutrition, two partners of the SAPA project. With the knowledge and experience of both companies, Bel Ga Myanmar (with an annual capacity of 12 million DOCs) has the ambition to support the independent local farmers with High Quality DOCs.

The landfill works for the project have been completed and construction is expected to start in December 2016. The hatchery will launch its first DOCs to the Myanmar poultry market by June 2017.

Furthermore, Bel Ga Myanmar is also in the process of identifying land for a poultry breeding farm capable of accommodating 96,000 hens to ensure that farmers will get a stable supply of high quality DOCs and to help address the rapidly growing demand for poultry products in the country.

The presence of Bel Ga Myanmar will contribute to the development of not only the independent poultry farmers but also of the agricultural industry in Myanmar.

On Wednesday (12 October) Minister Koenders (Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Netherlands) opened the Dutch embassy in Myanmar (formerly known as Burma). An unique moment because everywhere else in the world the Dutch embassies are closing down or at least decreasing the number of staff. But in Myanmar a new Dutch embassy is being established.

Furthermore, this was the first Dutch political mission to the new Myanmar government. The last political elections in November 2015 were the first elections in 60 years in which the leading party (NLD: National League of Democracy) was democratically chosen by a majority of votes. After 60 years of military rule, and hardly any focus on the development of the country and the people, the current government has a very challenging task but certainly shows the mentality to succeed.

Only two months ago the first Dutch ambassador arrived in Yangon. This changed the economic mission of the Netherlands in Myanmar into a more ambitious mission which results in having a Dutch embassy present in Myanmar. Surely this indicates the potential of Myanmar in general, and specifically in trade and the water and agro-food sector.

During his 3-day visit to Myanmar Minister Koenders had meetings with the private sector in order to stimulate and strengthen the economic relationships between the Netherlands and Myanmar. This is also something he stressed several times during his speech at the opening of the embassy.

For SAPA, these are encouraging and beneficial developments: the establishment of the Dutch embassy in Myanmar; the continuous strengthening of the economic relationships between the Netherlands and Myanmar; and finally the focus on developing and improving the agriculture of the new government.

An important step for the livestock industry for Myanmar and the Netherlands.

Saturday the 1st of October was a memorable day in the lengthy history of the family-owned business of De Heus. At this day, De Heus Animal nutrition celebrated the opening of its first factory in Myanmar. This ultra-modern factory has been built over the past six months. With this new facility De Heus gives further substance to its ambitions to strengthen its position in Asia.

For several years, De Heus is exporting nutritional products from Vietnam to Myanmar. In this period, De Heus gained a lot of experience and knowledge about the local agricultural market. Based on the conviction that De Heus can make a valuable contribution to the further professionalisation of livestock farming in Myanmar, it was decided to start the production of feed in the local market. The new plant has a capacity of 120,000 tons, but at a later stage this capacity can be increased up to 240,000 tons. With its location in the immediate proximity of Yangon, the factory is strategically located in relation to the major local agricultural arias. De Heus Myanmar will focus mainly on the poultry sector (biggest sector in size), but also in the pig and cattle sectors De Heus sees ample growth opportunities.

As lead partner in the SAPA (Sustainable and Affordable Poultry for All) consortium this is also an important step in order to improve the quality of corn produced in Myanmar and at the same time upgrade the capacity of both broiler as corn farmers in order to further professionalise the livestock farming in Myanmar.

During the opening, various important actors of the agricultural and livestock sector were present, both national as international. The Minister of Agriculture, Livestock and Irrigation (Dr. Aung Thu) was present and expressed his admiration and the necessity for investment in livestock and agriculture to improve the Myanmar food security which is necessary to sustain healthy growth. Besides the Minister, also the Ambassador of the Royal Kingdom of the Netherlands in Yangon was present and he expressed his admiration to the fast growth of Myanmar and the openness of the current government to encourage this growth. Finally, he expressed his proudness to De Heus that this Dutch company will contribute to improving the livestock industry and therefore the food security in Myanmar.