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Rising global food prices pose problem for Gulf

The global increase in prices of basic foods such as wheat, dairy products and cooking oil due to rising demand and crop shortages poses a problem for the Arabian Gulf due to its $10 billion dependency on imported produce, officials said.

  • Staff Report
  • Published: 23:38 April 8, 2008
  • Gulf News

Dubai: The global increase in prices of basic foods such as wheat, dairy products and cooking oil due to rising demand and crop shortages poses a problem for the Arabian Gulf due to its $10 billion dependency on imported produce, officials said.

"The problem is of particular importance for this region which imports at least $10 billion worth of food products per year," said Jim Meltz, director of AgraMe show, the region's largest showcase for the agricultural sector which began yesterday.

The region imports 90 per cent of its food and feed requirements.

As a result, food prices were estimated to have increased 30 per cent in 2007 and are expected to rise 40 per cent this year.

Dubai is also a re-export centre for perishable products serving a consumer market of over two billion people in countries such as Russia, India, Pakistan and East Africa.

Modern farming methods to decrease the region's dependency on imports were unveiled at the AgraME Exhibition that opened at the Dubai Exhibition Centre.

Abdul Whed Alwani, editor of the Arab World Agribusiness Magazine, said a shortage of water was the main reason behind the region's huge imports.

"Water is a problem and governments must seriously look at solving it," he said.

While the region had grown and developed significantly, he said, water remained an insurmountable hurdle.

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