Jebel Ali Free Zone (Jafza), a leading business and logistics hub, recorded a growth of 24 per cent in food and agriculture trade and an increase of 7 per cent in its customer base year-on-year in 2019, reinforcing its status as a preferred destination for businesses related to food and agricultural commodities.

The free zone has a dedicated Food and Agriculture cluster of 1.57 million sq m with over 550 companies from more than 70 countries, employing over 6,000 people. Thirty-eight per cent of these companies are from the Middle East, 23 per cent from Asia, 19 per cent from Europe, 10 per cent from Africa, 8 per cent from North America, 1 per cent from South America and 1 per cent from Oceania.

Jafza is home to some of the region’s top players in the industry such as Bayara, Al Khaleej Sugar, Alokozay, Nestle, Heinz, Unilever, Hunter Foods to name a few. The strategic location and premium facilities of Jafza have made it the preferred destination for many countries globally — including Brazil, the USA, Pakistan, Netherlands and South Africa, importing sugar, meat, cocoa, and dairy products. Meanwhile, Iraq, India and Saudi Arabia are among the top export destinations, exporting coffee, tea, fruits, spices and dairy products.

Mohammed Al Muallem, CEO & Managing Director, DP World, UAE Region and CEO of Jafza, said: “We have explored ways to further facilitate food trade and distribution while maintaining the continuity of food supply, which is crucial to the UAE and the region. Our mandate is to prioritise the needs of citizens and residents, and we have worked towards sustainability, ensuring sufficient food is available. We have ensured business continuity and a prompt recovery for the post Covid-19 economy.

“Illustrating Dubai's role as a major gateway for global trade, the emirate’s external food trade volumes in the first half of this year reached nine million tonnes, representing AED32 billion in total, whereas Dubai’s food imports touched Dh22 billion. This demonstrates how robust Dubai’s economy is despite the global Covid-19 pandemic and also underpins the effectiveness of its food security strategies. In line with the newly launched UAE Sustainable Agriculture System, we aim to support the increase of self-sufficiency from agricultural production and workforce in the agricultural sector.”

DP World, UAE Region’s multimodal connectivity reinforces Dubai’s long-term commitment to maintain the growth and development of regional trade. Thanks to Jafza's strategic location near Jebel Ali Port, it offers connectivity to over 3.5 billion consumers. As one of the world’s finest locations for companies to establish their businesses, the free zone ensures flexible services through Dubai Trade and DP World, UAE Region’s single window platform for cross-border trade.