Dubai : The Middle East is investing heavily in innovative farming methods in a bid to reduce growing dependence on the rest of the world for up to 90 per cent of food needs, an official for a forthcoming agribusiness trade event says.
As a world food crisis bites harder, one solution has been buying up large tracts of land in developing nations to secure food supplies. The International Food Policy Research Institute shows the Middle East as one of the biggest land investor regions, buying up 1,149,000 hectares of land in Pakistan, the Philippines and Africa in the last three years.
"Growing concerns over food security have pushed countries in the Arabian Gulf to seek solutions to arid land problems," said Goutam Malhotra, Exhibition Manager for AGRA Middle East in a press statement.
"As environmental issues around the world reduce crop production, however, the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) and wider Middle East countries are also looking at alternate methods to introduce at home to reduce dependence on the rest of the world for 90 per cent of their food needs. Innovative solutions in the agriculture sector are in great demand in the region and AGRA Middle East brings together leading decision-makers in one place at one time.
"Livestock needs are of great importance but to maintain a healthy herd, fodder of high quality is required which is rarely found in this arid region. As a response to this, there has been greater interest in high-tech systems for the production of animal feed and rearing livestock."
Running for more than 10 years, AGRA Middle East at the Dubai World Trade Centre from March 29 to 31 covers five closely linked sectors — agribusiness; poultry and livestock; fishing and aquaculture; floriculture and the newly launched machinery and supplies.
The new machinery and supplies sector has been introduced at AGRA Middle East this year because of the growing market for agricultural machinery and technology in the region.
