• News
  • Technology Features
  • Stock and Shares
  • Videos
  • Events
  • About This Site
  • Meet the Writers
  • Advertising
  • Email Newsletters
Facebook Twitter Instagram
Food and Farming TechnologyFood and Farming Technology
  • News
        • Aeroponics
        • Agricultural Drones
        • Agricultural Machinery
        • Animal Feed
        • Animal Health
        • Aquaculture
        • Artificial Intelligence
        • Autonomous Robots
        • Autonomous Vehicles
        • Biotechnology
        • Blockchain
        • Business
        • Controlled Environment Agriculture
        • Cultured Meat
        • Data & Analytics
        • Energy
        • Environment
        • Farming Equipment
        • Fertilisers
        • Food Delivery
        • Food Logistics
        • Food Manufacture
        • Food Packaging
        • Food Safety
        • GPS Tracking
        • Harvesting Technology
        • Ingredients
        • Hydroponics
        • Insect Farming
        • Internet of Things (IoT)
        • Livestock Monitoring
        • Microsensors
        • New Products
        • Pest Management
        • Plant Based Foods
        • Plant Health
        • Precision Agriculture
        • Protein
        • Robotics
        • Satellite Crop Monitoring
        • Soil Management
        • Sowing and Planting
        • Space Farming
        • Sustainability
        • Vertical Farming
  • Tech Features
  • Videos
  • Stocks & Shares
        • AGCO Corporation (AGCO)
        • Agronomics Limited
        • Alico, Inc. (ALCO)
        • Amazon.com, Inc. (AMZN)
        • AppHarvest
        • Archer-Daniels-Midland Company (ADM)
        • Bayer AG (BAYN.DE)
        • Beyond Meat, Inc. (BYND)
        • Bridgford Foods Corporation (BRID)
        • Bunge Limited (BG)
        • Cal-Maine Foods, Inc. (CVGW)
        • Calavo Growers, Inc. (CALM)
        • Caterpillar Inc. (CAT)
        • CF Industries Holdings, Inc. (CF)
        • CNH Industrial NV
        • Corteva Agriscience
        • Costco Wholesale Corporation (COST)
        • Deere & Company (DE)
        • Eat Beyond Global
        • Fresh Del Monte Produce Inc. (FDP)
        • Krones AG (KRN.DE)
        • McCormick & Company, Incorporated (MKC)
        • McDonald’s Corporation (MCD)
        • Mondelez International, Inc. (MDLZ)
        • Nutrien Ltd. (NTR)
        • Origin Agritech Limited (SEED)
        • Real Good Food plc (RGD.L)
        • MeaTech 3D Ltd
        • S&W Seed Company (SANW)
        • Sanderson Farms, Inc. (SAFM)
        • Shineco, Inc. (TYHT)
        • SunOpta Inc. (STKL)
        • Sysco Corporation (SYY)
        • The Andersons, Inc. (ANDE)
        • The Kraft Heinz Company (KHC)
        • The Mosaic Company (MOS)
        • Tyson Foods, Inc.
        • YUM! Brands, Inc. (YUM)
        • Walmart Inc. (WMT)
  • Events
    • Virtual
    • North America
    • Europe
    • MENA
    • Asia
    • South America
LinkedIn Twitter Facebook
Food and Farming TechnologyFood and Farming Technology
Features

MENA digi-conference: How agtech can enhance food security for the region

Anthony JamesBy Anthony JamesJuly 6, 2020No Comments
Share
LinkedIn Twitter Facebook Email

Government and ministry delegations from Saudi Arabia, UAE, Lebanon, Oman, Jordan, Egypt, South Africa, Finland, and New Zealand attend new video conference exploring the potential of agtech to overcome the region’s arid climate

Anthony James

Challenged by both an unforgiving climate and rapidly growing population, governments across the Middle East and North Africa (MENA), a region home to 70% of the world’s extremely poor, continue to strive to develop more robust food security strategies to deliver greater access to safe, nutritious, and sufficient produce, all year round.

Meanwhile, current restrictions to travel and trade due to COVID-19 have only further emphasised the need for the region to rapidly reform its approach to agriculture and ensure its food security by becoming more self-dependent.

Hence, the first ever MENA Food Security Digi-Conference: Agriculture, which took place 29 and 30 June, 2020, couldn’t have been better timed. The two-day online forum, which was organised by GM Events, based in Dubai, brought together around 200 attendees from a mix of government, non-government, private sector and consumer organisations to discuss the latest trends and technologies in agriculture, and highlight the opportunities to improve the quality and quantity of domestic produce across the region.

The conference began with a keynote presentation from Fatema AlMulla, senior research analyst, Food Security Office, Ministry of Cabinet Affairs & The Future, Prime Minister’s Office, UAE. AlMulla revealed how the UAE is working towards a more secure food delivery future, as evidenced by the country’s recent climb up the Global Food Security Index rankings by ten places, moving from 31st in 2018 to 21st in 2019.

The drastic improvement is a direct result from the efforts and funding allocated from the government into ensuring the UAE continues to drive technology and innovation, according to AlMulla.

Technology focus

A number of dedicated technology innovation sessions then followed AlMulla’s introduction, with the speakers in each session highlighting some of the key, emerging technologies that specifically cater to the MENA agriculture sector. Innovative solutions already being studied and implemented in the region include everything from AI, aeroponics and automation, through to hydroponics and vertical farms.

A notable case study on The Sharjah Research, Technology and Innovation Park was presented by H.E. Hussain Mohammed Al Mahmoudi, CEO of the facility. Established in 2016, the park has been mandated to develop and manage an innovation ecosystem that promotes research and development and supports enterprise activities and collaboration between industry, government, and academia.

A panel discussion was also held to discuss some of the initiatives the region already has in place to support the continued growth of the sector, including the Ag-Tech Building Code, Unified Agriculture License, Agriculture Loan Guarantee and Food Security Data Platform. The panel was led by industry leaders including Sheikh Dr. Majid Sultan Al Qassimi, adviser to the Minister, Ministry of Climate Change and Environment, UAE; Mariam Eid, head of agro industries development, Ministry of Agriculture, Lebanon; Dr. Naufal H Rasheed, advisor of agriculture policy and investment, Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries, Oman; and Salvatore Stephen Lavallo, project manager, Abu Dhabi Investment Office.

Climate-resilient crops

A presentation by Dr. Ismahane Elouafi, director general of the International Center for Biosaline Agriculture (ICBA), which is based in Dubai, reinforced how vulnerable the region’s farmers are to the impact of climate change, and how they need more affordable and innovative solutions to increase productivity and combat drought, water scarcity and salinity.

Every day about 2,000 hectares of irrigated land in some 75 countries are degraded due to salinization, resulting in more marginal environments, noted Elouafi, who also warned of rising temperatures, changes in evapotranspiration and rainfall, changes in heat waves, sea level rises and the effect of rainfall decrease on the frequency and intensity of sand storms.

To better cope with such conditions, Elouafi made the case for more climate‐resilient plants such as quinoa, pearl millet, and barley as alternatives to traditional staple crops. She also pressed for more use of halophytic crops such as salicornia, salt grass, blue panicum and buffel grass for food, feed and biofuels; and for greater exploitation of alternative water sources, including brackish water, sea water, treated wastewater and produced water.

“The harsh biophysical conditions of the MENA region from water scarcity, poor soil conditions and harsh climates have hindered the expansion of profitable and sustainable agriculture,” noted Elouafi’s colleague, Seta Tutundjian, ICBA’s director of programs, and moderator of one of the conference’s technology sessions. “But we currently live in exciting times when advances in science, information technology and logistics offer unimaginable prospects to advance our food system.”

Indoor farming

Valoya, a Finnish company specialising in LED grow lights, spoke on the second day of the conference to share how it has already helped some of the region’s producers establish profitable vertical farms.

“It’s very well known that the MENA region is challenged by a lack of arable land and is thus heavily dependent on imported foods,” noted Nemanja Rodic, Valoya’s marketing director. “Coupled with the COVID-19 circumstances that place an even greater burden on international logistics, the region’s need for food security is more relevant than ever.”

Although indoor farming represents a clear solution to a growing global population and food security threats, Rodic admits it isn’t without its challenges: “The technology needed to set it up is maturing, however we still see a number of farms struggling,” he says.

“What we have observed is that the farms that incorporate the highest degree of automation reach profitability the quickest. Naturally, all of the equipment used in farms should be put together in a way that the end product is of high quality and reaches end customers efficiently. Lighting plays a key role in that. It is not enough to produce a lot of biomass quickly. Plants need to have a good taste. The main way to stimulate the production of secondary metabolites which in simple terms are flavour and nutritional quality of the plants, is through a light spectrum that has been tested and proven to do just that.”

Unsurprisingly, Rodic argues lighting is not where farmers should look to cut corners when first establishing indoor facilities, pointing out that LED lighting such as Valoya’s has matured enough to have an attractive price point and has been tested thoroughly enough to be enable quick deployment and offer guaranteed results.

Hydroponics

However, with natural sunlight in plentiful supply, MENA farmers are generally more concerned with the challenges posed by the dry climate – in particular, how to ensure appropriate irrigation without wasting water.

“Hydroponics is very efficient on water use and is therefore the best solution for the desert,” argues Lior Hessel, CEO at Growponics Ltd, a UK-based company boasting years of experience of establishing hydroponic systems in dry conditions, including facilities in the south of Israel, south of Spain and Oman.

The company designs and builds automated greenhouses featuring a unique, shallow-bed, rotating system in combination with hydroponic growing methods to deliver significantly greater yields and lower costs than farming arable land. The company says its greenhouses can be installed in any climate, enabling high-quality local produce to be grown anywhere in the world.

“Growponics can build massive hydroponics greenhouse projects and have them in production within six months,” says Hessel, when asked just how quickly the region could implement change with the necessary levels of investment and government support. “We can use waste water after we treat it and solid waste as a source of energy,” he continues. “We have zero carbon emissions.”

Dedicated focus

In total, MENA Food Security Digi-Conference: Agriculture hosted more than 200 attendees, along with 30 regional and international speakers, as well as 11 sponsors across two days. The conference is the first of a series of virtual events focusing on food security to be organised by DigiConnect, a division of Great Minds Event Management. Both speakers and attendees praised its timeliness and dedicated focus.

Mariam Eid, Ministry of Agriculture, Lebanon
Mariam Eid, Ministry of Agriculture, Lebanon

“This conference comes at a critical moment when the world in general and the MENA countries in particular are trying to go through a difficult period where all countries return to agriculture and food security to survive”, said Mariam Eid, head of agro industries department, Ministry of Agriculture, Lebanon. “The conference presented many ideas for innovative solution and drew together experts from various aspects related to agriculture and food,  both from the public and private sectors, to contribute to decision making that could make life easier.”

Noel Greenway, managing partner of Great Minds Event Management,
Noel Greenway, managing partner of Great Minds Event Management,

Noel Greenway, managing partner of Great Minds Event Management, concluded: “The objective of hosting MENA Food Security Digi-Conference was to support the UAE’s requirements to increase local agricultural production. With the government formulating plans and policies to support local food production, there was a real need for the industry to get together and share their knowledge, insights and experiences on how they can achieve these goals by utilising the latest in technological advances and innovations.”

 

Share. LinkedIn Twitter Facebook Email
Anthony James

With over 20 years experience in editorial management and content creation for a broad spectrum of market-leading B2B magazines and websites in the transport and technology sectors, Anthony has written news and features covering everything from airport security to autonomous vehicles, and stadium design to sustainable energy.

Related Stories

Vertical Farming

IGS and Eden Towers to build vertical farm in Perth, Australia

February 1, 2022
Autonomous Vehicles

“The future of agriculture starts now” – John Deere launches autonomous 8R tractor

January 4, 2022
Latest News

IGS and Eden Towers to build vertical farm in Perth, Australia

February 1, 2022

“The future of agriculture starts now” – John Deere launches autonomous 8R tractor

January 4, 2022

Elo Life Systems becomes independent food & agriculture business

December 22, 2021
In the Spotlight

Reducing methane emissions from cattle and dairy farming

November 15, 2021By Matt Peskett

At COP26 this month, 105 countries including the US, Canada and Brazil promised to reduce…



Upcoming Events
  1. Agritechnica Asia 2023

    May 25 @ 9:00 am - May 27 @ 5:00 pm
  2. Indoor AgTech Innovation Summit in June 2022 – New York

    June 23 @ 9:00 am - June 24 @ 5:00 pm
  3. iVT Expo

    June 29 - June 30
  4. World Agri-Tech Innovation Summit 2022 – London

    September 20 @ 9:00 am - September 21 @ 5:00 pm

View All Events

Site Information

About This Site
Advertising
Meet the Writers
Free Email Newsletters

LinkedIn Twitter Facebook
© 2021 Food & Farming Technology is owned by Firetop Ltd 4854392 | © Editorial images: stock.adobe.com | All rights reserved | Privacy Policy | Cookie Policy

Type above and press Enter to search. Press Esc to cancel.

We use cookies on our website to give you the most relevant experience by remembering your preferences and repeat visits. By clicking “Accept All”, you consent to the use of ALL the cookies. However, you may visit "Cookie Settings" to provide a controlled consent.
Cookie SettingsAccept All
Manage consent

Privacy Overview

This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. Out of these, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. But opting out of some of these cookies may affect your browsing experience.
Necessary
Always Enabled
Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. These cookies ensure basic functionalities and security features of the website, anonymously.
CookieDurationDescription
cookielawinfo-checkbox-advertisement1 yearSet by the GDPR Cookie Consent plugin, this cookie is used to record the user consent for the cookies in the "Advertisement" category .
cookielawinfo-checkbox-analytics1 yearSet by the GDPR Cookie Consent plugin, this cookie is used to record the user consent for the cookies in the "Analytics" category .
cookielawinfo-checkbox-necessary1 yearSet by the GDPR Cookie Consent plugin, this cookie is used to record the user consent for the cookies in the "Necessary" category .
elementorneverThis cookie is used by the website's WordPress theme. It allows the website owner to implement or change the website's content in real-time.
PHPSESSIDsessionThis cookie is native to PHP applications. The cookie is used to store and identify a users' unique session ID for the purpose of managing user session on the website. The cookie is a session cookies and is deleted when all the browser windows are closed.
Advertisement
Advertisement cookies are used to provide visitors with relevant ads and marketing campaigns. These cookies track visitors across websites and collect information to provide customized ads.
CookieDurationDescription
ab1 yearOwned by agkn, this cookie is used for targeting and advertising purposes.
CMID1 yearCasale Media sets this cookie to collect information on user behavior, for targeted advertising.
CMPRO3 monthsCMPRO cookie is set by CasaleMedia for anonymous user tracking, and for targeted advertising.
CMPS3 monthsCMPS cookie is set by CasaleMedia for anonymous user tracking based on user's website visits, for displaying targeted ads.
CMST1 dayCasale Media sets this cookie to collect information on user behavior, for targeted advertising.
DSID1 hourThis cookie is set by DoubleClick to note the user's specific user identity. It contains a hashed/encrypted unique ID.
id1 year 1 monthSet by Google DoubleClick, this cookie is used to create user profiles to display relevant ads.
IDE1 year 24 daysGoogle DoubleClick IDE cookies are used to store information about how the user uses the website to present them with relevant ads and according to the user profile.
KADUSERCOOKIE3 monthsThe cookie, set by PubMatic, registers a unique ID that identifies a returning user's device across websites that use the same ad network. The ID is used for targeted ads.
KTPCACOOKIE1 dayThe cookie, set by PubMatic, registers a unique ID that identifies a returning user's device across websites that use the same ad network. The ID is used for targeted ads.
mc1 year 1 monthQuantserve sets the mc cookie to anonymously track user behaviour on the website.
mdata1 year 1 monthThis cookie is used by Media Innovation group and registers a unique ID to identify a visitor on their revisit, in order to show them relevant ads.
OAGEOsessionOpenX sets this cookie to avoid the repeated display of the same ad.
OAID1 yearCookie set to record whether the user has opted out of the collection of information by the AdsWizz Service Cookies.
ov1 year 1 monthThis cookie is set by the provider mookie1.com. This cookie is used for serving the user with relevant content and advertisement.
pxrc2 monthsThis cookie is set by pippio to provide users with relevant advertisements and limit the number of ads displayed.
rlas31 yearRLCDN sets this cookie to provide users with relevant advertisements and limit the number of ads displayed.
test_cookie15 minutesThe test_cookie is set by doubleclick.net and is used to determine if the user's browser supports cookies.
uuid3 monthsMediaMath sets this cookie to avoid the same ads from being shown repeatedly and for relevant advertising.
VISITOR_INFO1_LIVE5 months 27 daysA cookie set by YouTube to measure bandwidth that determines whether the user gets the new or old player interface.
YSCsessionYSC cookie is set by Youtube and is used to track the views of embedded videos on Youtube pages.
yt-remote-connected-devicesneverYouTube sets this cookie to store the video preferences of the user using embedded YouTube video.
yt-remote-device-idneverYouTube sets this cookie to store the video preferences of the user using embedded YouTube video.
Analytics
Analytical cookies are used to understand how visitors interact with the website. These cookies help provide information on metrics the number of visitors, bounce rate, traffic source, etc.
CookieDurationDescription
__gads1 year 24 daysThe __gads cookie, set by Google, is stored under DoubleClick domain and tracks the number of times users see an advert, measures the success of the campaign and calculates its revenue. This cookie can only be read from the domain they are set on and will not track any data while browsing through other sites.
_ga2 yearsThe _ga cookie, installed by Google Analytics, calculates visitor, session and campaign data and also keeps track of site usage for the site's analytics report. The cookie stores information anonymously and assigns a randomly generated number to recognize unique visitors.
_gat_gtag_UA_154262053_11 minuteSet by Google to distinguish users.
_gid1 dayInstalled by Google Analytics, _gid cookie stores information on how visitors use a website, while also creating an analytics report of the website's performance. Some of the data that are collected include the number of visitors, their source, and the pages they visit anonymously.
CONSENT2 yearsYouTube sets this cookie via embedded youtube-videos and registers anonymous statistical data.
u1 yearThis cookie is used by Bombora to collect information that is used either in aggregate form, to help understand how websites are being used or how effective marketing campaigns are, or to help customize the websites for visitors.
uid1 year 1 monthThis is a Google UserID cookie that tracks users across various website segments.
Others
Other uncategorized cookies are those that are being analyzed and have not been classified into a category as yet.
CookieDurationDescription
GoogleAdServingTestsessionNo description
ppwp_wp_session30 minutesNo description
Functional
Functional cookies help to perform certain functionalities like sharing the content of the website on social media platforms, collect feedbacks, and other third-party features.
CookieDurationDescription
na_id1 year 1 monthThe na_id is set by AddThis to enable sharing of links on social media platforms like Facebook and Twitter.
na_rn1 monthThe na_rn cookie is used to recognize the visitor upon re-entry. It allows to record details on user behaviour and facilitate the social sharing function provided by Addthis.com.
na_sc_e1 monthThe na_sc_e cookie is used to recognize the visitor upon re-entry. It allows to record details on user behaviour and facilitate the social sharing function provided by Addthis.com.
na_sr1 monthThe na_sr cookie is used to recognize the visitor upon re-entry. It allows to record details on user behaviour and facilitate the social sharing function provided by Addthis.com.
na_srp1 minuteThe na_srp cookie is used to recognize the visitor upon re-entry. It allows to record details on user behaviour and facilitate the social sharing function provided by Addthis.com.
na_tc1 year 1 monthThe na_tc cookie is used to recognize the visitor upon re-entry. It allows to record details on user behaviour and facilitate the social sharing function provided by Addthis.com.
ouid1 year 1 monthAssociated with the AddThis widget, this cookie helps users to share content across various networking and sharing forums.
Performance
Performance cookies are used to understand and analyze the key performance indexes of the website which helps in delivering a better user experience for the visitors.
CookieDurationDescription
d3 monthsQuantserve sets this cookie to anonymously track information on how visitors use the website.
SAVE & ACCEPT
Powered by CookieYes Logo