How the UAE charts out a food-secure future

Dubai - The UAE has built the infrastructure - the airlines, the ports - and this enabled food to be traded locally.

Food security is a national priority for the country because of limited food production and wastage issues, a UAE minister said on the second day of the Global Women's Forum on Monday, February 17.
"We know our behaviour, where wasting a lot of food is influencing the food system globally. So, our leadership has seen that food security needs to be a national priority because of the challenges that are lying ahead and because we are a country that does not produce a lot of food," said Mariam bint Mohammed Saeed Hareb Al Mehairi, Minister of State for Food Security.
Al Mehairi said the UAE needs to plan to be able to be food secure, not only today but also in the future.
The minister said "being in a country where water is scarce, the country understood that to be able to be food secure, we have to be a hub of food trade". So, the UAE has built the infrastructure - the airlines, the ports - and this enabled food to be traded locally, as well as for export.
"This flow of food gave us the accessibility to food. We also understand that in the future, as we know, population is on the rise and this means food demands are also on the rise," she added.
Understanding the value of food
Al Mehairi said growing up with her German grandmother helped her understand the value of food from a young age.
"My grandmother went through World War II. She was always telling us not to waste food. And (she shared the) experiences she went through as a mother of many children at the time when there was no food. These stories formed my mindset and understanding of how important food security is."
Her personal experiences and passion for diving, the minister said, also shaped her understanding of the portfolio she is handling.
"I have seen our marine environment and developed an interest in aqua culture - how important fisheries are for the UAE and how we have to ensure that with the climate change affects, we have to look for other means of sourcing out fish."
anjana@khaleejtimes.com

• UAE