Opinion Agriculture Agricultural monopoly is a dangerous game in the Gulf Food prices have risen dramatically, thanks in part to agribusiness giants August 1, 2024
Food & Drink Americana scales back fast-food openings as profit drops again Americana Restaurants International, the Mena franchise owner for KFC, Pizza Hut and Hardee’s, has scaled back its growth plans for this year after another drop in profits. The Saudi-UAE company reported a 41 percent slump in net profit to $52 million for the second quarter of the year, as Mena diners turn their backs on […] July 30, 2024
Leisure & Hospitality ADIA consortium in $5bn bid for Indian snack maker Haldiram’s A consortium that includes Abu Dhabi Investment Authority (ADIA) is planning a Rs400 billion ($4.8 billion) bid to acquire a majority stake in Haldiram’s, an Indian snack maker, according to a media report. The ADIA deal, if finalised, will value Haldiram’s at INR700 to 780 billion ($8.4 to $9.3 billion), Moneycontrol.com, an Indian business portal, reported, quoting […] July 30, 2024
Opinion Leisure & Hospitality Dubai restaurants struggle in the dog days of summer The summer expat exodus and rent increases are piling pressure on Dubai's hospitality industry July 26, 2024
Leisure & Hospitality Jadwa buys 60% of Saudi chain Tikkaway Restaurants Jadwa Investment is acquiring a majority stake in the Saudi fast-food chain Tikkaway Restaurants for an undisclosed sum. The Riyadh-based investment management company acquired a 60 percent stake in Tikkaway through its food and beverage opportunities fund. The homegrown restaurant chain has 20 branches and plans to expand to more than 40 outlets across the […] July 18, 2024
Retail Saudi shoppers heavily favour local produce Saudi shoppers heavily favour local produce over imported foodstuffs and have a high interest in the use of artificial intelligence in food shopping, a new survey has found. It also described the Saudi supermarket sector as a huge opportunity for discount retailers. The Customer Perception Map by global consultancy Oliver Wyman, which included Saudi Arabia […] July 15, 2024
Manufacturing Agthia enters Saudi protein market with $25m facility The UAE’s food and beverages group Agthia is expanding its presence in Saudi Arabia, the largest economy in the GCC. The Abu Dhabi-listed company, which is majority owned by the Abu Dhabi government through the state investor ADQ, has opened a new AED90 million ($24.5 million) protein manufacturing facility in Jeddah to support growing demands […] July 9, 2024
Agriculture Bids open for Saudi ‘coffee city’ in production drive Saudi Arabia has opened bids for coffee producers to acquire lots in an area of the southwestern Al-Baha region that is intended to be the country’s first “coffee city”. The country aims to become a major coffee producer alongside the likes of Brazil. The area set aside for coffee bush planting is in the mountainous […] July 4, 2024
Analysis Agriculture Weather and politics keep pressure on price of rice The status of rice as a global food staple means that it is also a political minefield for producer nations. So all eyes are on India as rice prices fluctuate at around a 15-year high. Different varietals and markets command different prices, but trading on “contracts for difference”, which track benchmark prices, saw the cost of […] June 27, 2024
Food & Drink Mubadala injects $250m to revive Turkey’s Getir Abu Dhabi’s Mubadala Investment Company will invest $250 million in Turkish grocery delivery startup Getir as part of a restructuring programme that will split it into two standalone units. The first standalone business will focus on domestic online groceries and food delivery services, with Mubadala, an existing shareholder, holding the management and majority stake, Reuters […] June 25, 2024
Opinion Agriculture Arab states must raise intra-trade to buffer against food shocks Gulf producers are neglecting their own farming potential June 24, 2024
Food & Drink Mubadala-backed Zamp buys Starbucks brand in Brazil Zamp, a Brazilian restaurant chain backed by Abu Dhabi sovereign fund Mubadala, has signed a deal to buy the Starbucks brand in the South American nation. The operator of Burger King and Popeyes stores in Brazil, Zamp signed an agreement with bankruptcy-hit SouthRock Group to acquire certain assets and rights of the Starbucks brand for 120 […] June 7, 2024
Aviation Airline passengers to get takeaways delivered onboard Airline passengers will soon be able to pre-order meals for their journey from a delivery app, a leading industry executive has predicted. The Dubai-based global air and travel services provider Dnata launched a trial of a pre-flight order and delivery scheme in the Netherlands four years ago. Robin Padgett, divisional senior vice-president of the company’s […] June 5, 2024
Agriculture Tunisia’s honey production hit by global warming Almost three-quarters of beekeepers in Tunisia have seen their honey production curtailed by climate change. The North African country has 305,000 hives tended by 13,000 beekeepers, according to Hassene Ben Salem, chief engineer at the Office of Livestock and Pastures. But he said extreme weather conditions have almost halved honey production, from an average of […] May 22, 2024
Opinion Leisure & Hospitality When the saxophonist appears, it’s time to pay the bill The noise in Dubai's restaurants is the single biggest obstacle to enjoying a night out May 17, 2024
Food & Drink ADIA consortium bids for stake in India’s largest snack maker A consortium including Abu Dhabi Investment Authority (ADIA) has submitted a bid to acquire a controlling stake in the snacks business of India’s Haldiram, according to a media report. The consortium, which also include US-based alternative asset manager Blackstone and GIC of Singapore, aims to secure 75 percent of the Indian company’s snacks unit, valuing it […] May 14, 2024
Food & Drink Americana profit tumbles as Gaza boycotts hit sales Americana Restaurants International’s revenue and profit fell again in the first quarter of this year as Mena diners continue to shun western brands in protest at the conflict in Gaza. Americana, which runs 2,456 fast-food outlets across the region, reported a 16.3 percent reduction in revenues year on year, to $493.5 million. Net profit fell […] May 7, 2024
Analysis Food & Drink Lebanon’s diners defy both slowdown and spectre of war It is a cliché in Lebanon that people will always find the money for restaurants, even with war and conflict once again threatening its southern borders. “No matter what, Lebanese people want to go out,” says Christian Ghosn, CEO of Ghia Holding, which operates 25 restaurants in Lebanon, the Middle East, and Europe. When Ghosn’s […] May 7, 2024
Food & Drink Turkey’s Getir exits Europe and US to focus on home market Turkish grocery delivery startup Getir has announced that it is leaving the European and US markets to focus on Turkey. Getir had already exited the French, Italian, Spanish and Portuguese markets in 2023, and will now cease operations in the UK, the US, Germany and the Netherlands. These account for 7 percent of its revenue. […] April 29, 2024
Manufacturing Saudi Arabia’s food factory count rises to 1,300 The total number of food factories operated by the Saudi Authority for Industrial Cities and Technology Zones (Modon) has reached 1,300, across 36 cities. The increase signifies the growing capacity of the domestic food industry and its localisation efforts, the state-run Saudi Press Agency reported. Food industry companies have recorded a growth rate of more […] April 24, 2024
Retail Spinneys targets market cap of $1.5bn on Dubai listing Supermarket operator Spinneys will have a market capitalisation of between AED5.11 billion to AED5.51 billion ($1.39 billion-$1.5 billion) after its initial public offering (IPO) price range was set between AED 1.42 and AED 1.53 per share. The total offering size is expected to be between AED1.3 billion and AED 1.4 billion, the company said. Spinneys last […] April 23, 2024
Leisure & Hospitality Almarai profit rises despite Egyptian pound devaluation Saudi Arabia’s largest dairy producer, Almarai, said profit rose 9 percent year on year as a result of higher volume growth and the ability to absorb the adverse impact of the Egyptian pound devaluation. Net profit reached SAR692 million ($184 million) in the first quarter of 2024, compared with SAR635 million a year ago, driven […] April 22, 2024
