In a move to provide safe, high-quality feed for local farmers, De Heus has announced the opening of three new factories in Uganda, India and Kenya, expanding its feed operations. The factories in Uganda and India started testing and commissioning in June and are expected to deliver commercial products in August 2025, followed by the Kenyan factory launching in October of the same year.
Photo: De Heus
De Heus has announced that, in a significant and unprecedented milestone, three new De Heus feed mills are commencing operations in Uganda, India and Kenya — all within a period of just three months. By providing safe, high-quality feed, these facilities are expected to help local farmers improve their business performance and contribute to sustainable food supplies in these countries. De Heus highlights this achievement as a demonstration of its capacity to rapidly scale its impact across multiple geographies, reinforcing its long-term vision for responsible food production.
INEFFICIENCIES IN THE VALUE CHAIN
Uganda, Kenya and India are all dealing with inefficiencies in their value chains. “In Uganda, fish is a big part of the country’s diet,” says Stefan van den Bogaard, De Heus’ Group Director Technology & Investments. “Aquaculture is growing, but almost all aquafeed is imported so the price of fish feed is too high. The first step towards a sustainable food supply is domestic production of high-quality aquafeed. That’s why we’ve invested in an aquafeed plant in Njeru, near Jinja, on the north shore of Lake Victoria. By reducing dependence on imported feed, avoiding stock-outs, and providing high-quality extruded aqua feed, we will help lower costs for local farmers and increase their incomes.”
Photo: De Heus
ENSURING SAFE, HIGH-QUALITY ANIMAL FEED
Kenya relies heavily on imported raw materials, which is one of the key reasons agriculture has become the government’s top priority. “They’re also concerned about the health of the population,” explains van den Bogaard. “That’s why the government is very happy to welcome companies like De Heus, who take food safety seriously.” The new De Heus factory in Athi River, near Nairobi, is a dedicated animal feed plant and will serve the country’s poultry, swine, and ruminant sectors. The situation in India is slightly different to Uganda and Kenya. “We already produce animal feed at a rental factory in India,” says van den Bogaard. With our greenfield project, we will end operations at the rental facility, underlining our trust in the Indian market. Our new factory in Rajpura, Punjab, similarly will produce stable, reliable, high-quality feed for ruminants, swine and poultry, which will help farmers improve their performance.”
CUTTING-EDGE FACTORIES
All three feed mills will be modern facilities using state-of-the-art equipment. “We import equipment to ensure high production efficiency and stable quality,” adds Stefan van den Bogaard. “Our suppliers include several international companies with whom we’ve built strong relationships through our operations in Europe and Asia.” In choosing equipment, quality is always paramount. “In Uganda, for example, we could use horizontal dryers which are generally easier to operate and cheaper,” continues Stefan van den Bogaard. “But they don’t deliver the same superior results as vertical dryers. This is what we learned by experience in other aqua plants.”. Moreover, our Group CAPEX team members design the entire production process in-house, giving the company a major competitive advantage across the globe.
Photo: De Heus
ENSURING FEED QUALITY AND PERFORMANCE
To safeguard feed quality, all three feed mills will also have their own professional laboratory on site. “Quality control is key for us,” emphasises van den Bogaard. “It’s about both nutrient values and feed safety.” In these laboratories, all raw materials and finished products undergo stringent testing to check for contamination and verify nutrient levels. “If we’re selling a product with say 25% protein, it’s actually in there with a very small variance,” he adds. “Some of our local competitors conduct far fewer lab tests and some of the smaller ones don’t even test at all.” As a result, farmers can rely on a stable quality of De Heus feed consistently, which is vital for them for improved animal health and performance.
A UNIQUE ACHIEVEMENT
The factories in Uganda and India started testing & commissioning in June and are expected to deliver commercial products in August 2025, followed by the Kenyan factory launching in October. “We have built three new feed mills in relatively new markets, with unfamiliar contractors, in three different countries simultaneously,” says van den Bogaard proudly. “That’s quite unique and demonstrates what De Heus is capable of as a global organisation.”
“We started with nothing, so we’ve had to do all the permitting, engineering and construction management and now the commissioning,” he continues. “Besides Technology, a lot of departments have been involved, such as IT, Nutrition & Formulations and Quality, but also Finance, Legal, Marketing and HR. It’s great that as a company we can do this.” This cross-company approach will continue once the factories are operational. For Example, production specialists, a former plant manager and some operators from Vietnam and the Netherlands will travel to the feed mills to provide support and trainings. Another example is the cross BU support of Ivory Coast, Ethiopia and Ghana to implement the IT systems in Uganda and Kenya. “It’s a true one-team multiple-county effort —an achievement that combines our global mindset and local responsiveness,” concludes Stefan van den Bogaard.
