Dubai Chambers has hosted a Canadian food and beverage trade mission for a B2B business matching event at its headquarters in Dubai. The event aimed at connecting Canadian food and beverage companies, with representatives from Dubai’s food and beverage industry. In attendance were Mohammad Ali Rashed Lootah, President & CEO of Dubai Chambers, and H.E. Radha Krishna Panday, Ambassador of Canada to the UAE.
A total of 195 business matching meetings were conducted with Dubai stakeholders and companies, providing the Canadian trade mission with opportunities to cooperate and create partnerships that unlock the potential of the food and beverage sector.
“Canada has long been a strategic trade partner for the UAE and Dubai Chambers’ role is to connect Dubai and Canadian markets, bringing together relevant parties to facilitate events and meetings to further strengthen bilateral trade and commercial relationships.F&B is a major, profitable business industry in Dubai and foodservice, in particular, is receiving growing interest amongst investors. Therefore, we are bringing together Canadian and Dubai companies to explore and capture the opportunities emerging from this important sector. Growing trade relations with Canada will advance mutual business opportunities in the food and beverage sector as well as support the UAE’s food security ambitions,” said Lootah.
Echoing similar sentiments, H.E. Radha Krishna Panday, Ambassador of Canada to the UAE, added, “Dubai Chambers is a long-standing and trusted partner for Canada. Together, we have strengthened the business ties between our countries, and we are always looking for opportunities to move the relationship forward. We are grateful to Dubai Chambers for welcoming our food and beverage delegation from Canada this week, and for hosting a successful business-to-business program.”
In recent years, the UAE government has significantly increased its focus on food security, as it aims to ensure that the economy remains competitive and fully prepared to meet future challenges for the next 50 years.
UAE consumer foodservice sales value reached AED44.5 billion in 2021, an increase by 16.4% compared to 2020, according to Euromonitor. By 2026, UAE consumer foodservice outlets sales are expected to reach AED55 billion and grow with a CAGR of 4.3%.
Under the UAE National Food Security Strategy 2051, the country is developing international partnerships to diversify food sources, enhancing local food production with advanced technologies, and adopting legislation and policies to reduce food waste. The strategy offers investors the certainty and policy stability required to pursue long-term opportunities in the sector.
Through business matching programs and other collaborative initiatives, Dubai Chambers provides both Dubai and Canadian businesses the unique opportunity to cooperate and create partnerships that unlock the potential of the food and beverage sector to enable further mutual economic growth and expand trade opportunities between the two countries.
