Business news

27 Oct 2020

Belarus to take part in food exhibitions of Turkey, UAE

MINSK, 27 October (BelTA) - Expositions of Belarusian food and beverage manufacturers Belarus. The Taste of Nature will be on display at major food exhibitions in Turkey and the UAE - CNR Food Istanbul, and Gulfood in Dubai, BelTA learned from the Belinterexpo of the Belarusian Chamber of Commerce and Industry.

The CNR Food Istanbul exhibition will be held in Istanbul on 25-28 November. Last year it was attended by over 650 companies from 17 countries, including the Czech Republic, India, Jordan, Iran, Poland, Serbia, Malaysia and Belarus. The number of professional visitors reached 51,278 people from 117 countries. The exhibition was also visited by more than 240 officials and delegations. The program included more than 600 business meetings.

“The exhibition draws huge interest due to the fact that Turkey is not only a large consumer market with more than 83 million people and about 52 million tourists, according to the data for 2019 but also a trading gate to the Middle East and North Africa. Over the past 15 years, Turkey annually imported food products worth $12-15 billion. International experts in agriculture predict further growth in Turkish food imports in the next five years, due to an increase in the population, food shortages and deteriorating agricultural production within the country,” Belinterexpo said. The company added that, according to the information of the Belarusian embassy in Turkey, the increasing cost of food production inside the country makes the Turkish government make compromises in the import of agricultural products, reducing import duties.

“Recently, the countries of the Middle East have also become an important export destination. The dry climate makes the Gulf states major food importers. In some countries, the demand for food annually increases by 30%. Governments of Middle Eastern countries take part in the selection and procurement of products, including through specialized exhibitions,” the exhibition company stressed.

world's largest annual exhibition of food products Gulfood will be held in Dubai on 21-25 February. Annually it gathers more than 5,000 participants and about 100,000 professional visitors from more than 190 countries. According to Belinterexpo, the high cost of entrance tickets reduces the number of casual visitors, so the participants of the exhibition deal directly with the professional audience.

According to the company, today the UAE is the world's third largest re-export market after Hong Kong and Singapore. The UAE is a key hub for re-exports of food products in the Gulf region. Over 90% of food products are imported through the UAE in the region, which also includes Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia. The list of the main imported products of the region includes meat and milk in the first place. As far as the import of meat products is concerned, beef accounts for 21% of total food expenses inthe UAE food basket. Chicken eggs are also an important product.

Aleksei Bogdanov, Head of the Central Office for Foreign Economic Activities of the Belarusian Agriculture and Food Ministry, thinks that the UAE market is a premium one and import intensive in relation to such products as poultry and beef, and provides good prospects for Belarusian exporters. Deputy Agriculture and Food Minister Igor Brylo said that Belarus plans to export dairy products, beef and poultry meat to the UAE market.

The exposition of Belarusian manufacturers at the Gulfood exhibition has already become traditional. The event will be held for the sixth time. The program will also include business events such as seminars, conferences and negotiations, which will give participants an additional opportunity to establish business contacts.

The expositions are organized by the Belinterexpo exhibition company of the Belarusian Chamber of Commerce and Industry with the support of the embassies of Belarus in Turkey and the United Arab Emirates, the Agriculture and Food Ministry and Belarusian state food industry concern Belgospishcheprom.