Dubai Exports, the export promotion agency of the Department of Economic Development (DED), participated in SIAL, the leading trade fair for European and global food industry, for the 5^th year alongside Sharjah Exports Development Centre of the Sharjah Chamber of Commerce & Industry (SCCI), displaying the diversity and global competitiveness of the food industry and allied sectors in Dubai.

The exhibition, held 21-25 October in Paris, was a meeting place for 7,000 companies from 109 countries to display their innovative products and services across 21 categories to retail and food sector professionals, importers and distributors. Altogether there were 22 companies from the UAE exhibiting 575 diverse products at SIAL this year.

Engineer Saed Al Awadi, CEO of Dubai Exports, said SIAL Paris has always provided a valuable platform for Dubai Exports to reiterate its commitment to be a preferred source market for Europe in the food and beverages sector.

“Food and beverages is one of the most important manufacturing sectors in the UAE, contributing to 12% of the manufacturing value added. F&B is also one of the six focus industries in the Dubai Industrial Strategy 2030 and with its existing strengths and future direction, local manufacturers and exports will continue to have  vast opportunities in Europe where demand for foods has grown and diversified substantially in recent years,” said Al Awadi.

Together, European Union (EU) countries account for the largest imports as well as exports of foodstuffs. In 2016, EU countries imported 93 million tonnes of foods worth AED 423 billion (101 billion euros) but in 2017, imports rose to AED 492 billion despite subdued global trade. The UAE exported AED 12 billion worth of goods to EU in 2017 with foods alone accounting for AED 723 million.

His Excellency Mohamed Ahmed Amin, Acting Director-General of SCCI, stated that the Sharjah Export Development Centre participated in SIAL as part of promoting, marketing and upgrading local food trade and supporting the UAE private sector.

“SIAL enabled UAE companies to make a strong presence overseas and have their diverse capabilities recognised at a global forum, in addition to establishing contacts with potential customers. The experience thus gained will help local companies adopt global best practices to develop and expand their business. Through participating in SIAL we underlined our commitment to working together with local and federal entities, including Dubai Exports, to support and grow UAE exports,” Amin concluded.