Dubai: Dubai Municipality is to launch a contest for the best home-grown vegetable, fruit or herb on Thursday, to mark Work Food Day (October 16).
The winners of the Grow Your Food contest will be announced in February next year and honoured at a ceremony during the National Day celebrations with a certificate and cash prize or coupon worth Dh5,000-Dh10,000 per person or institution.
Participants can cultivate various types of fruits and vegetables in their home garden or apartments and send pictures through the campaign’s Facebook page.
A jury will select the best 100 images and 10 winners after a visit to the house.
Hussain Nasser Lootah, director-general of the municipality, on Wednesday announced the campaign aimed at “seeding a culture of freshness and healthy living among the residents of Dubai”.
It is organised by the municipality’s food control department in collaboration with Eastern Masala and Jaleel Holdings under the World Food Day theme ‘Family Farming: Feeding the world, caring for the earth’.
The plant has to be grown at home – be it a balcony, rooftop, courtyard or “even a small space down the parking lot where one can sow seeds of greenery and freshness to inspire healthy living through home-made vegetables and herbs”.
Khalid Sherif, director of the department, said: “A committee will be formed to oversee the household farming and assess the best plantations and the winners will be announced in February 2015 in conjunction with Gulfood [exhibition and conference].”
