De Heus Animal Nutrition has a longstanding commitment to advancing aquaculture through global research and development. Founded in 1911 as a Dutch family business focused on milling and trading feed ingredients, De Heus has grown into a global animal nutrition company with operations in more than 75 countries. The company began its aquafeed activities in the early 2000s in Asia, gradually expanding its expertise and production capacity. From the start, investing in quality has been crucial. A major milestone was the opening of the Aquaculture R&D Center in Vinh Long, Vietnam, in 2017. This fully equipped facility enables De Heus to test innovative feed formulas and novel raw materials, focusing on species such as Tilapia and African catfish.
De Heus sees great potential for aquaculture far beyond Asia, especially in Africa. This vision has led to exports across many African countries, allowing the company to combine global expertise with valuable local knowledge. Based on these experiences, De Heus established dedicated aquafeed facilities in Ghana, Egypt, and Ethiopia, further strengthening its local presence.
In Uganda, De Heus has been active through its Koudijs brand since 2018, providing trusted animal nutrition solutions to both livestock and aqua farmers. De Heus is now entering a new chapter by establishin gits own aquafeed factory, transitioning the aquafeed brand from Koudijs to De Heus.
After building relationships with customers, learning from the local expertise and seeing the market potential, De Heus is now building a state-of-the-art aquafeed facility to support our customers with locally produced feed, ensuring a stable supply without depending on feed imports. This factory is expected to produce up to 100,000 metric tons of fish feed per year at full capacity, meeting the growing demand in the East African market. Our local team will use its expertise to support customers on the ground while being backed by our global formulation department based in the Netherlands—ensuring international standards are adapted to local needs. In addition, we have established a laboratory for extensive quality testing, so our customers can expect the same premium feed quality as they have come to trust from our operations in Vietnam.
This investment reflects De Heus’s commitment to empowering East African fish farmers with high-quality, locally produced aquafeed and contributing to the sustainable development of the region’s aquaculture sector.