Interloop is expanding its footprint in the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) dairy market, valued at $2.3 billion, through a Turkish joint venture. The move is part of the company’s strategy to diversify exports beyond textiles and strengthen its position in the global food sector.
According to a report by Arab News, Interloop’s chairman Musadaq Zulqarnain revealed that the company plans to use its dairy subsidiary, IRC Dairy Products Ltd, to capture a larger share of the region’s fast-growing cheese and butter market. The firm has partnered with Turkish company Rella Gida, which processes 120,000 liters of milk daily to produce mozzarella cheese and butter for multiple markets, including Pakistan, Eurasia, and the Far East.
Zulqarnain said he would travel to Türkiye this month to finalize export plans to the GCC. He noted that cheese and butter imports in the region reached $2.3 billion in 2024, with Saudi Arabia accounting for nearly $980 million. “We expect to produce around 7–8% of the cheese imported by the entire GCC,” he said.
Interloop aims to significantly expand its dairy production capacity over the next three years. IRC Dairy plans to triple output, targeting 21,000 tons of cheese, 3,500 tons of butter, and 8,400 tons of whey powder annually by 2028. The company currently generates about 10% of its revenue from exports, with projected sales of Rs. 10 billion this fiscal year.
The company is also exploring a new production facility in Saudi Arabia through a joint venture to meet growing dairy demand in the Kingdom. This move supports Pakistan’s broader economic push to grow non-textile exports and attract foreign investment.
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Beyond dairy, Interloop is investing in logistics and information technology services. Its technology division already operates in the UAE and is pursuing partnerships in Saudi Arabia to provide AI, cloud computing, and software solutions.
To finance its growth, Interloop plans to list its dairy division on the Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX). The expansion comes as Pakistan and Saudi Arabia strengthen their economic ties, with a new bilateral agreement expected by the end of October.
