UAE largest food consumer in GCC region
Alpen Capital’s revised 2013 GCC Food Industry Report reveals that the UAE is the largest food consumer in the GCC. According to the report, the GCC region overall will consume 49.1 million tonnes of food annually by the end of 2017, with the UAE set to be the largest consumer in per capita terms.
Overall the report found that Saudi Arabia currently consumes 872kg of food per capita, Qatar 852kg, Kuwait 634kg, and Bahrain 453kg per capita. The UAE’s per capita food consumption currently stands at 1,486kg per year — 27 per cent more than Oman, which consumes 1,095kg of food per capita annually.
However, the leader in terms of volume was revealed to be Saudi Arabia, a ranking owed to its considerably larger population when compared with other countries in the region. The report found that Saudi Arabia will account for 59% of the GCC food consumption by 2017, totalling a staggering 29 million tonnes overall.
Regarding the findings of the report, Mohammed Jalal Al Rayssi, Director of Communication and Community Service at Abu Dhabi Food Control Authority (ADFCA) and Chairman of the SIAL Middle East organising committee, said: “Population growth, increasing income per capita and a booming tourism industry are the main drivers of food consumption in the GCC region, while food is currently the largest segment of consumer expenditure in the entire region. All reports indicate a fast growing market, with consumer spending on food in the GCC expected to reach $106 billion in the next five years.”
The continuous – and notable - growth reaffirms a positive trend towards the food industry within the Middle East. With more opportunities arising for food production to take place within the region rather than relying on imported goods, particularly in the packaged foods sector, the consumer habit revelations could encourage many companies looking to break into, or expand, within the GCC.
Al Rayssi says: “This clearly underlines huge opportunities for private sector players to expand within the region, and SIAL Middle East provides the all important stage to capitalise on the opportunities that lay ahead.”
