Analysis Agriculture Saudi and Brazil sow seeds to partner on food security Saudi Arabia is intensifying its trade and investment ties with Latin America in pursuit of food security and green energy, as a ministry-led delegation hunts for opportunities in Brazil, Chile, Costa Rica, Argentina, Panama and Paraguay. A visit to São Paulo earlier this week by Khalid al-Falih, Saudi minister of investment, coincided with a Brazilian […] August 3, 2023
Agriculture UAE’s farming task force clinches $136m supply deal Farms in the UAE have provisionally agreed to supply food and agricultural products totalling AED500 million ($136 million) over five years to some of the country’s biggest public sector institutions. The deal is the first to be struck by the National Farm Sustainability Initiative (NFSI) task force, a government group set up by the UAE’s […] August 2, 2023
Agriculture Tunisia approves $87m loan to safeguard food supplies Tunisia has approved a TND268 million ($87 million) loan from the African Development Bank (AfDB) to safeguard sustainable food production in the country. The Assembly of People’s Representatives (APR) gave the loan the green light. It will be used to fund the Cereal Sector Inclusive and Sustainable Support Project (Padific), a body aimed at improving […] August 1, 2023
Food & Drink UAE restaurants feel the squeeze from rice restrictions The UAE has banned the export of rice for four months, and while most restaurant owners have sufficient excess stock in place, some are concerned supply chain disruptions will lead to increased costs. The Gulf state said the ban will cover rice of all varieties, including brown rice, fully or partially milled rice and broken […] July 31, 2023
Agriculture Philippines seeks rice supply deal with India Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. said on Saturday the country must boost its rice stocks and that he may seek a supply deal with India, worried about the potential impact of El Nino dry weather on the local harvest and about other suppliers. “I’m thinking about the national supply for rice,” Marcos told officials in […] July 30, 2023
Agriculture Cop28 urges nations to put food at heart of climate action The UAE has called on governments around the world to put food at the centre of their climate-change agendas. Speaking at the UN Food Systems Summit in Rome on Monday, Mariam bint Mohammed Almheiri, the UAE’s minister of climate change and the environment and Cop28 food systems lead, invited governments to sign the Leaders Declaration […] July 25, 2023
Agriculture Saudi dairy giant plans to turn bio-waste into fertiliser Saudi farming giant National Agricultural Development Company has signed a deal to recycle the bio-waste produced by its 92,000 cows. The business, which is known as Nadec, said an estimated 150,000 tons of bio-waste were produced annually at its dairy farms in the kingdom. In a filing to the Saudi Stock Exchange on Tuesday, Nadec […] July 25, 2023
Agriculture PIF’s newest target is the $15bn global dates industry Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund (PIF) has established a new company to improve the production capacity of Ajwa dates in the Madinah region and expand their global market presence. Al Madinah Heritage Company (MHC) will help develop the Saudi food and agriculture industry, driving the diversification of the economy in line with Vision 2030, the […] July 24, 2023
Analysis Agriculture Saudi’s wealth fund enters $7.3bn camel dairy market Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund has established a company to produce and distribute camel milk and other dairy products. Named Sawani, the company is intended to help PIF grow the kingdom’s camel farming industry, in line with Vision 2030 goals to expand the food and agricultural sectors. The global camel dairy market was estimated to […] July 20, 2023
Opinion Agriculture Cop28 must advance urban agriculture to cut emissions The summit in Dubai should advance agricultural technology to mitigate climate change July 20, 2023
Agriculture UAE firms to develop land in Angola for rice and avocados Two UAE companies have signed a deal to develop a vast plot of land in Angola as the African agricultural sector’s appeal grows among Gulf investors. Dubai Investments and E20 Investment, an Abu Dhabi agribusiness investment company, will develop 3,750 hectares – approximately the size of 9,300 football fields. Maximising the potential of Angola’s fertile […] July 11, 2023
Agriculture India’s 2023 wheat output 10% lower than estimates India’s wheat harvest in 2023 is at least 10 percent lower than the government’s estimate, a leading trade body told Reuters, amid a sharp rise in local prices during the past two months. Lower wheat production for a second straight year could complicate New Delhi’s efforts to keep a lid on prices of the staple […] June 22, 2023
Economy Morocco reveals $990m plan to support farmers Morocco’s government has launched a 10 billion dirham ($990 million) plan to support the country’s farmers, designed to combat the impact of drought and global economic challenges. A report from the Higher Commission for Planning said 229,000 jobs had been lost in rural parts of the country, where agriculture employs over 30 percent of the […] June 14, 2023
Food & Drink Agriculture major Nadec lines up $533m rights issue Saudi food processing company National Agricultural Development Company – known as Nadec – has filed an application to regulators to increase its capital by SAR2 billion ($533 million) through a rights issue. Nadec’s application has been sent to the Capital Market Authority for approval, the company said in a statement to the Saudi Stock Exchange. […] June 13, 2023
Agriculture Lithuania’s food exports to UAE hit $2bn in Q1 2023 Exports of food and agricultural products to the UAE from Lithuania rose 17.2 percent year on year to €1.83 billion ($1.97 billion) in the first quarter of 2023. The main exports were concentrated milk and cream, which accounted for 38.9 percent of the value of all agri-food products, said Sarune Sableviciene, agricultural and commercial attaché […] June 13, 2023
Agriculture UAE’s ADQ backs solar-powered desalination plant Silal, part of Abu Dhabi-based investment and holding company ADQ, has partnered with Netherlands-headquartered solar thermal desalination company, Desolenator, to launch a pilot project using solar-powered desalination technology to produce pure water for irrigation. The project aims to contribute to the decarbonisation of food production in desert climates by significantly lowering the carbon footprint of […] June 11, 2023
Agriculture Abu Dhabi agribusiness links up with Estonian forage firm An Abu Dhabi agribusiness has signed a supply agreement that will drive construction of forage processing facilities in the Baltic. Al Dahra Group has made the deal with Golden Fields, an Estonian animal feed company. Under the partnership, Al Dahra has an exclusive offtake agreement for forage – such as corn silage, grasses, alfalfa and […] May 29, 2023
Opinion Food & Drink The Arab world needs to ease global food trade barriers The region must embrace food imports May 23, 2023
Opinion Agriculture Lengthy war in Sudan could jeopardise Gulf food security Sudan’s now-protracted conflict could have ongoing and unforeseen consequences, not only for the war-ravaged African state, but for its trade connections, including the GCC As Sudan’s warring militaries – the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) and Rapid Support Forces (RSF) – battle for supremacy, catastrophic damage is being wrought on the nation’s already rundown infrastructure and utility […] May 4, 2023
Energy Lootah Biofuels turns gaze to Asia after Maldives deal Lootah Biofuels has signed an agreement with state-owned Fenaka Corporation, a company serving the island communities of the Maldives, to establish its first biofuel plant outside the UAE. Lootah, which is based in Dubai, said the deal underscored its commitment to expand its reach internationally to meet long-term energy needs through clean alternatives. For the […] May 1, 2023
Agriculture Turkey imposes 130% tariff on some grain imports Turkey imposed a 130 percent import tariff of some grain imports including wheat and corn, according to a presidential decision published in the official gazette. The import duty comes after some European Union countries announced bans on grain imports from Ukraine last week. But some traders said Turkey’s move is largely to protect its local […] April 26, 2023
EXCLUSIVE Tech RedSea rules out listing in search for growth Sustainable agriculture business RedSea has revealed plans to raise extra funds, but has ruled out a listing for the company for the moment. Founded in 2018 by plant scientist Mark Tester, agriculture engineering expert Ryan Lefers and material scientist Derya Baran, the Saudi-based agtech startup aims to find ways to feed populations in the face […] April 24, 2023
