EVENT OVERVIEW

EXHIBITION OVERVIEW

The Middle East Organic and Natural Product Expo Dubai is the Middle East’s sole business event that focuses on organic and natural products. It has been connecting suppliers with buyers for 17 years and is held under the patronage of the Ministry of Climate Change and Environment UAE and supported by International Federation of Organic Agriculture Movements (IFOAM).

UAE, where the Expo is held, also holds the position as the third largest re-exporter in the world, with over $546 Billion worth of goods being sent out from the trade hub. Its unique location allows it to link hemispheres together, making it a popular center for re-export.

Reflective of the growth of the natural and organic industry in the region, the show doubled in size and launched two Special Events in the form of the Tea & Coffee Pavilion and the Traditional, Complementary and Alternative Medicine (TCAM) Conference & Expo caters to two of the strongest industries in the region.

2020 will see the introduction of some exciting new features that are based on the areas within the local bio industry that has seen the fastest growth. These are the Superfoods pavilion, the Ingredient Section, Fresh Produce Corner and the Date Pavilion.

I came here to meet my existing suppliers, and because we are interested in sourcing new brands and products from the field of skin and personal care. I am happy to say that we met some interesting companies and hope that it will go further. You will see me next year at the event.

ELENA NEGROBOVA

Director of SoPritti Global

We have seen exhibitors from different countries, and this show’s growth over the past few years can be taken as a good sign, and I hope that this exhibition will only grow in the future. We have managed to source some items that were quite interesting.

KATARINA GJOSHEVA CHESHLARO

Owner of Midway Middle East

I work at a clinic in Abu Dhabi and found the TCAM sessions to be very insightful. Even though doctors like me specialize in one field of alternative therapy, I learnt that you can merge Ayurveda, homeopathy and more to create a holistic treatment plan. Usually we only have allopathic conferences where we get our CME points, but this time...

DR FATIMA

Abu Dhabi Homeopathy Specialized Medical Centre

I had a very productive time at the show, the ambience and overall feeling was great. As I am sourcing for MedX Pharmacy - we were looking for both nutrition and medicinal products. I have got in touch with three or four suppliers, as they had what I was looking for, and now we are in touch for business. I...

MATHEW K JOSEPH

Procurement Manager of MedX Pharmacy

We saw a very high trend of organic products appearing in Dubai, especially from the past 2-3 years. We met a lot of buyers, and had a lot of pre-scheduled meetings, and if only 20% of the people that say they’re interested in distributing my products comes through, I am a lucky man and I have a good business.

NUNO ALBARRAN

Director of LusoTrade, UAE

We assumed that most of the visitors would be people based here in Dubai, but I had a meeting with a gentleman from Sudan whose was able to use ArabianOrganics to tap in and access us. His interest in our products was bought to my attention because of the portal.

PENELOPE PREMPEH

Owner of House of Prempeh, Ghana

This is our first time exhibiting at atrade show in Dubai. This is a niche trade show, so buyers come here looking for natural products. It has been a great experience for us -we have met several retailers and distributors from the Middle east [at the expo] - Lulu, Al Madina. Fathima Supermarket, etc.

ROSE YASMIN

CEO of Doluvo Sdn Bhd, Malaysia Pavilion

I am here with a delegation of 14 women, and we just ended a panel discussion about women in agribusiness and their opportunities and challenges. For many of them it is their first time in the region, and they’ve gotten a lot of international exposure, experience and knowledge through this expo. We’ve had a very good experience!

SHARI JULIANNE-HAMMOND

National Coordinator for She Trades

PRODUCT PROFILE

With a focus on the 5 natural market segments such as Food & Beverages, Health, Beauty, Living and Environment, the expo is the largest gathering of bio products in the region and is considered by industry members to be the ideal place to source organic and natural products.

BUSINESS OPPORTUNITIES FOR YOU

Import and Re-export

The Gulf Co-operation Council countries’ food imports alone is estimated to reach $53.1 billion by 2020, with most of them importing anywhere from 70%-90*% of their food needs.

UAE, especially is also going to be home to Dubai Food Park; the first wholesale trading city in the region, created to ease and bolster the import, export and re-export that Dubai serves as the hub within the region for.

Dubai holds the position as the third largest re-exporter in the world, with over $546 Billion worth of goods being sent out from the trade hub. Its unique location allows it to link hemispheres together, making it a popular center for re-export.

Retail

The consumers in the region have proven to be overwhelmingly keen on buying organic and natural products; retail shelf space for organic products have gone up by 60% in the last four years alone. Some retail chains that supply organic produce in UAE saw an astonishing 200% increase in purchases as of 2016. The retail giants of the region have started to devote exclusive sections to natural and organic products, due to surveys reporting that 55% of the population think there aren’t enough healthy options in stores.

E-commerce has been growing at a breakneck pace in the Middle East, with Saudi Arabia and UAE being the key players; the online commerce sector is estimated to reach $69 Billion by 2020. This is thanks to the young and tech savvy demography of 40% population in the age group of 20-39 who look for quick, convenient and secure ways to buy products, and are at home with technology.

Private Label

Private labelling, or white labelling is the process of one company’s product being branded, marketed and sold as another company’s goods. As a trend, it has shown global growth, according to Nielsen.
The private label market in the Middle East began to show growth within large chain retailers in 2014 but has begun to expanding with increasing speed over the course of the past 5 years.

A number of retail giants in UAE and Saudi Arabia have taken extensively to private labelling products as their own in the last 2 years, with studies showing that a whopping 18% of them reporting changing their shopping habits to save money. The number of shoppers happy to substitute their mid-range brands with private labeled products has also gone up from 55% to 65% from 2017 to 2018.

THE MIDDLE EAST ORGANIC MARKET’S GROWTH

The growth in the organic market in the Middle East has been nothing short of exponential during the past couple of years. As the commercial hub in the region, it is the perfect place to kickstart opportunities in the booming natural market that is fueled by an increasing shift towards healthy living and high disposable incomes. Being one of the largest import markets in the world, this adds substantial weight to any organic, non GMO, gluten and paraben free, or natural product producers or manufacturers who wish to enter the market.

The regional market for organic and natural beauty products is predicted by experts to reach $5 billion in value by 2022. Meanwhile, the F&B market for organic goods is expected to be worth $18.42 Billion by 2022, showing a 14.4% CAGR growth from 2015.

RECENT MARKET DEVELOPMENTS

Retail shelf space for natural products grew by 60% over the past 4 years
UAE constructing Dubai Wholesale City, spanning 550 million sq. ft to accommodate growing wholesale market
92% of products are imported in the region, creating huge opportunities for international organic manufacturers
UAE third largest re-exporter in the world due to ideal geographical location
Major retailers tested the organic waters a few years ago and now order upto 10 times the amount from wholesalers and distributors
Position as international F&B destination spurs demand for imported natural products in HoReCa industry
Major chain retailers vow to private label 50% of products by 2020

Take a look at some of the companies we’ve helped launch into the Middle East

LOCATION

Dubai – the opportunity Hub!

Its unique geographical location makes the region a crucial link in the international trade routes and an important gateway to the Europe and Asia. Dubai especially, is a valuable re-export center, and the business hub of the region.

TIMING

Dubai this December is the perfect place to activate your products to the whole world.

Why?

Because apart from the being the best place to launch your products in the Middle East, Expo 2020 is being held in the city simultaneously- bringing in buyer delegations from around the world. There’s not going to be a better chance to benefit from such exposure anytime soon!

BUYERS

The Middle East Organic and Natural Product Expo expects over 10,000 B2B importers, re-exporters, retailers, distributors and wholesalers from the region, apart from exposure to 35,000+ buyers on ArabianOrganics.

PROFESSIONAL STATUS OF VISITORS

BUYER PROFILE - GEOGRAPHICAL BREAKDOWN

VISITOR INDUSTRY BREAKDOWN

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