#Food

US inflation

Oil extends losses as investors weigh US inflation, China demand

US inflation accelerated to a fresh 40-year high last month, raising the likelihood of more aggressive interest-rate hikes from the Federal Reserve

The Restaurant

Review: The Restaurant and Marea

Two Italian restaurants showcase fine Mediterranean fare with twists on the classics

Giving up meat? A vegetarian-only food app launches in Dubai

Yalla Veggie offers a selection of green restaurants, supermarkets, organic stores, bakeries and ethical startups

saudi coffee

Sovereign wealth fund PIF launches Saudi Coffee Company

Domestic annual Saudi coffee consumption is forecast to reach 28,700 tons by 2026

grocery

UAE approves new mechanism to control price increase of essential commodities

Prior approval is required from the Ministry of Economy by any supplier if they wish to raise prices of certain products

Getty Images

Dubai imported 7.9 million tonnes of food in 2021

It included 286,673 food shipments and over 1.7 million food products

Baskin Robbins celebrated the opening of its 1000th store at the Dubai Hills Mall on Thursday March 10, 2022 (Photo by Neeraj Murali)

Baskin-Robbins opens region’s 1,000th store in Dubai

Located in Dubai Hills Mall, the store was opened on March 10, by the American multinational chain and master licensee Galadari Ice Cream Company

talabat Cristiano Ronaldo

Watch: Cristiano Ronaldo appointed as official ambassador for talabat

Talabat will feature Ronaldo in a number of campaigns and on-ground activations across the MENA region

Food inflation risks balloon as prices of wheat to palm oil soar

Palm oil, which is used in thousands of products from cookies to shampoo, is on a record breaking run

UAE F&B

UAE’s F&B imports from Latin America reached $1.9bn in 2020

F&B exports from Latin American markets accounted for 12 per cent of the UAE’s total F&B imports in 2020

Food

Gulfood 2022: UAE’s F&B trade crosses $20bn from January-September 2021

Ten markets accounted for about 66 per cent of the UAE’s total F&B exports, with Saudi Arabia ranking first with a share of 17 per cent

Yasser Abdul Malak, Chairman & CEO of Nestle Middle East & North Africa

Yasser Abdul Malak appointed as MENA chairman and CEO of Nestlé

Nestlé MENA employs over 15,000 people in 19 countries, operates 25 factories , and achieved annual sales of nearly $3bn in 2020

abu DHabi

UAE’s Mubadala-backed Reef and Americana partner to open cloud kitchens across MENA

The cloud kitchens will operate Reef, Americana and third-party brands as well throughout the Middle East and North Africa

Urban farming startup Infarm gets funding from Qatar wealth fund

The investment will be used to expand to more fruits and vegetables and open its first centre in Qatar in 2023

Leading GCC-based companies fully compliant with Pledge on Responsible Food and Beverage Marketing to Children

The pledge informs and benchmarks how food and beverage products are marketed in a responsible way to children under the age of 12 in the region

Deliveroo launches in UAE’s fifth city

Residents of Ajman can now order food from local restaurants and takeaways

Riwa Khan_Majama

The SME Story: Riwa Khan, founder of Majama

Dubai-based Majama produces vegan and gluten-free desserts with ambitious plans to expand further into the GCC markets

New vertical farm launched in Dubai Industrial City

The facility will grow fresh kale, spinach, lettuce, tomatoes, strawberries and melons, and plans to supply hypermarkets, hotels and chefs across the country

Revealed: 5 cafés in Dubai that offer more than just coffee

From yoga eateries to co-working spaces that double as cafes, these joints are not to miss when you’re craving a little more than just coffee

Saudi Jeddah port eyes overseas deals after wealth fund backing

The Red Sea Gateway Terminal plans to invest in at least three international ports in the next five years

Joey Ghazal The Maine Mayfair London

Dubai concept The Maine to open in London’s Mayfair this year

The Maine Mayfair located at 20 Hanover Square, a Georgian Grade II-listed building, consists of five rooms across three floors

Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai

Sheikh Mohammed’s 100 Million Meals campaign achieves over double its target

Donations from 385,000 individuals, private and public companies and businessmen across 51 countries helped secure food parcels equivalent to 216 million meals

Dnata Blue Aqua

Dubai’s dnata partners with Blue Aqua to boost food security in Singapore

Blue Aqua will upcycle organic waste from dnata’s catering and ground handling operations into alternative insect protein for aquafeeds

Food Tech Valley Dubai

Sheikh Mohammed launches Food Tech Valley in Dubai

It seeks to triple the UAE’s food production and will include a smart food logistics hub, R&D facilities as well as agricultural technology and engineering labs

Dubai Multi Commodities Centre

DMCC to launch cacao centre in Dubai

DMCC will initially incubate a select range of cacao services within its DMCC Coffee Centre in Jebel Ali starting from mid-2021

Dubai food trade

Dubai’s external food trade totalled Dhs52bn in 2020

In terms of volume, the overall trade weighed 17 million tonnes

Dubai restaurant

Dubai closes 53 food outlets in Q1 2021 due to Covid-19 infractions

The municipality conducted 13,775 inspections during the first quarter of 2021, and issued warnings to 1,133 establishments

Dubai’s ENOC Group opens two new service stations in Sharjah

There are now seven ENOC service stations in Sharjah

Pure Harvest Smart Farms

UAE-based Pure Harvest Smart Farms raises $60m in new funding round

Shuaa Capital led a $50m structured sukuk for Pure Harvest co-investing with Franklin Templeton and Sancta Capital

Al Barakah Dates[2] copy

Al Barakah Dates to expand Dubai facility to make it ‘world’s largest date factory’

The facility is due for completion in early 2022