According to IFC, Zalar Holding SA (previously Zalagh Holding SA) is an industrial poultry producer in Morocco. The company produces across the entire poultry meat value chain—present in grain trading and importation, animal feed production, poultry production, broiler production, poultry slaughtering, and meat processing. The project is mainly financed via IFC’s equity investment of up to US$24 million, and local bank loans. 

In March 2016, CAO received a complaint filed on behalf of a coalition of community-based non-governmental organizations that alleged that the installation of a poultry breeding facility in their village was causing air pollution and subsequent health issues for residents. The complaint was regarding Atlas Couvoirs, a subsidiary of Zalar Holding Group.

CAO found the complaint eligible for assessment in April 2016 and conducted a field visit to discuss options for addressing the complaint with the relevant parties. During the assessment process, the complainants and the IFC client expressed their willingness to engage in a voluntary dispute resolution process facilitated by CAO. The assessment report is available, in English and Arabic.

Starting in November 2016, CAO worked with the parties to plan the dialogue, and in December 2016, the parties agreed on a series of ground rules that set out who would represent the community and the company, the principles of engagement, and the roles and responsibilities of the parties and of CAO.

Over four months, CAO interacted with the parties jointly and separately to assist them in working towards a mutually acceptable agreement. In February 2017, the company and community representatives agreed on:

• The company’s commitment to adhering strictly to environmental regulations. The company further committed to sharing relevant government permits and independent expert audits regarding the environmental performance of its operations with community representatives.
• The company’s commitment to prioritize hiring local community members from the Ristou, Tiddas, and Maaziz villages.
• The establishment of a dialogue committee that will meet at least once a year to discuss issues of concern or common interest, including community priorities for development projects for the company to support.
• The company’s commitment to a five-year plan to carry out community benefit projects responding directly to priorities identified by community representatives each year. In this five-year plan, the company committed to finance projects worth up to 100,000 dirhams per year.

The agreement between the affected community and the company was finalized and signed in August 2017. This concluded the CAO dispute resolution process. In 2018, the parties successfully carried out the first company-funded community development project geared to benefit the village. The community representatives had identified the need for the local students to have a bus to transport them to a secondary school outside the village. The bus was effectively transferred and delivered to the community in June 2018.

In 2019, the parties decided that the second community development project would be the construction of a water tower and the digging of a well, which would distribute water to Tiddas and surrounding villages, after careful consideration and debate. With delays in part due to the COVID-19 situation, the parties worked on implementing the project, including choosing adequate land on which to dig the well and build the water tower, requesting relevant authorizations, working on a budget, and choosing a construction firm. Construction started in September 2021 and was completed in June 2022.

The CAO mediation team traveled to Tiddas in June 2022 for a closing ceremony. The parties confirmed that the agreement has been fully implemented.

In September 2022, the conclusion report was released, and the case is now closed.  

The conclusion report in English and Arabic, and other related documents, are available under the “Case Documents” section below.