Work Starts at Iraq's First Infant Formula Factory

A new infant formula plant has begun construction in Baghdad, marking the launch of Iraq's first factory dedicated to producing baby milk and fortified nutrition products.

The facility, the Mohannad Ali Abdullah Infant Formula Factory, is being built by the Qatari construction company Magnum and will manufacture infant formula for the Turkish company Kulalac, producer of the Bebevit brand.

The project is a private sector investment with a planned production capacity of nine million packs per year, with the option to expand output to cover domestic demand and reduce the need for imports.

The launch forms part of a wider government drive to support industrial development in the pharmaceutical, food and construction sectors. Prime Minister Mohammed Shia' Al-Sudani attended the event and highlighted the role of private sector partnerships, credit support for small and medium-sized industries, and state-backed guarantees under the federal budget framework.

According to government figures, the number of small and medium enterprises that have entered operation has risen from 2,000 in 2021 to around 39,000, while 5,470 projects have been established during the current government term, including 53 industrial projects exporting their products abroad.

The factory is intended to help meet domestic demand for infant formula, amid estimates that children under two years of age represent around 5-6 per cent of Iraq's population.