Head of Food Trade Control, Food Safety Department, Dubai Municipality
Sajila Saseendran | Senior Reporter
As an emirate depending on imports for more than 90 per cent of its food supplies, lockdowns and travel suspensions across the world could have posed a major threat to food security in Dubai when the COVID-19 pandemic loomed large in early 2020.
But, as usual, Dubai rose to the occasion and turned the adversity into an opportunity. Thus, instead of a shortage in the market, food imports to Dubai increased in 2020 compared to 2019, thanks to the proactive measures and strategic decisions adopted by the emirate.
A senior Dubai Municipality official walked us through the days of intense planning, preparation and execution of policies that helped ensure that everyone had access to safe and nutritious food. There was no shortage and people did not have to resort to panic buying during the peak of the pandemic.
In an exclusive interview to Gulf News, Dr. Essam Sharaf Al Hashmi, head of Food Trade Control at Dubai Municipality’s Food Safety Department, shared how all government entities and the private sector in Dubai worked together to develop and adopt innovative ideas and employ technologies to foster food security in Dubai.
“We had all the relevant government departments such as Dubai Municipality, Dubai Customs, Dubai Police, Dubai Economy to name a few cooperating as a team,” said Dr Al Hashmi.
Ensuring uninterrupted supply chain
When the pandemic hit, he said, a food security committee set up at the Dubai government level started to evaluate the amount of the food that is produced internally in the UAE, especially in Dubai, and also the quantity of the imported food.
The Dubai Food Security Committee worked on defining basic food commodities and assessing food supply based on the needs and consumption habits of Dubai residents. It monitored companies that import and export food supplies, to determine whether to increase existing inventory.
The Committee also prepared studies and forecasts, developed proactive risk and emergency management plans, as well as awareness programmes and community outreach plans to enhance knowledge around food security in the emirate.
“The Committee was monitoring the amount of food that was coming to Dubai and also the countries of source,” said Al Hashmi, who was also a member of the committee with representatives from different Dubai entities.
For this, each food product was categorised into ‘locally produced’ and ‘imported from abroad’.
“Then we looked at the country of source of each imported item. We started communicating with the countries of the source to see the amount of food that is going to be produced and sent to Dubai. At the same time, we started looking for alternative solutions, especially because Dubai is largely dependent on imported food.”
“We analysed each food item and the main countries that are exporting it to Dubai and the other countries that also we can depend on in case of a lockdown in any of the main countries of source,” said Al Hashmi.
“By knowing the main source of the food and the alternative countries, we were able to have alternative solutions when there were lockdowns. That was the strategy towards the imported food,” he revealed.
Essential food items
Ensuring the supply of essential food commodities was of the highest priority. Hence, the team identified the most essential food items and made sure that those items are always available in Dubai, said Al Hashmi.
“After COVID-19 started, in cooperation with the federal government entities, we chose 21 essential food items. We made sure that these items never go out of stock,” he said.
In January 2020, the UAE had formed the Emirates Food Security Council to coordinate and lead the implementation of the National Food Security Strategy in conjunction with federal and local entities. Mariam bint Mohammad Al Muhairi, Minister of State for Food Security, presides over the decision-making of the council.
During the lockdown, Al Hashmi said, Dubai Municipality, in cooperation with Dubai Police, gave special permission to food companies to distribute food products to the retailers and restaurants to make sure that food is available everywhere.
Ensuring that the food products are not contaminated with the novel coronavirus was also a big concern in the initial stage of the pandemic, with some early reports suggesting that the virus could spread through food items and people panicking because of the reports.
Hence, the authorities had also started increasing inspections on the borders. Rapid-testing methods and increased access to quick testing through mobile laboratories were also introduced through the municipality’s new inspection system Qoot. This helped in increasing the tests and inspections on imported food commodities.
“We were taking all the precautions for ourselves. Plus, we were doing our normal procedures for the imported food to ensure the food is not contaminated. We were taking samples and checking documents that come along with food shipments. Plus, we were doing a survey in the market to take food samples and make sure that they meet food safety standards.”
The smart dashboard
During COVID-19, Dubai also launched a digital dashboard for food security.
It was Sheikh Mansoor bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, chairman of Dubai’s Supreme Committee of Crisis and Disaster Management, who launched the Food Security Dashboard of Dubai. The online platform supports the efforts of the Dubai Food Security Committee in line with the UAE’s strategic direction for ensuring food security across the country.
The dashboard is capable of using artificial intelligence and data analytics to rapidly measure the five important indicators of food security: the supply index, stock availability, local production, consumption levels, and the cost of vital commodities in the emirate.
“With this smart platform, we were monitoring the quantity of the imported food, the price of the food commodities, local production, consumption rate of the people in the UAE, especially Dubai. We were able to know on a daily basis if there is any change in price, quantity, local production, or consumption,” said Al Hashmi.
Role of private sector
When the pandemic started, the private sector also assumed a big role in supporting the government entities to ensure the supply chain is not hit and the people have enough supplies of food items, said Al Hashmi.
This was mainly through the Dubai Chamber’s committee involving representatives from the private sector, he said.
“We had representatives from the private sector on board to make sure that there is enough food production and supply in the local market.”
The government worked hand in hand with major players in the private sector. “We have close coordination with the big retailers and importers. They were feeding the online platform with the information updates.”
He mentioned the support of DP World in helping the authorities with food imports from ports operated by the company and big retailers like Lulu group arranging special flights from India to bring in food.
“There was a special area dedicated for cargo arrivals at the Al Maktoum International Airport,” said Al Hashmi.
The private sector also played a role in helping the government quash the rumours and fake news related to supply and safety of food commodities in the market.
“There is a team in charge of awareness programmes. It also has members from the private sector and Dubai Media Office. We were informing the public and publishing correct information about the amount of the food that is coming, stability of the importation of the food and also food safety inspections conducted by Dubai Municipality. Other government entities also worked together to make sure that everyone is eating safe food and to stop the rumours about insufficient food or unavailability of food in the market.”
Lessons learnt from the pandemic
As with every sector, the pandemic taught lessons in food security as well.
The importance of the cooperation between the government and private sector was one of the biggest lessons in the field of food security, according to Al Hashimi.
“We were one team, working together day and night to ensure that food was available in the market,” Al Hashimi said.
Lessons about the importance of having alternative solutions for food security were also learnt, he said.
“We were also looking into scientific research. We learnt that we need to have research centres, specific departments in Dubai looking after food security and making sure there is enough food available for all the people in Dubai all the time.”
Taking cues from these lessons, he said a new team is being formed to develop a strategic plan for food security to make sure that “the imported food is coming and local farms are producing as per the requirements in the market.”
“We have a lot of initiatives to encourage local production, especially those in Dubai farms, and to make those products available in the market. Many suggestions came to us, such as vertical agriculture farms. We had a lot of solutions by creating a new team for food security and coordination. We are going to study all the suggestions and plans in place and make them materialise.”
Success of the strategy
Figures speak for the success of the food security strategy and proactive measures by the Dubai government during the COVID-19 pandemic.
“The amount of food commodities imported to Dubai increased compared to that in 2019. This was a strong indication that all the efforts by the Dubai government and the private sector were successful especially during the peak of the lockdowns and travel suspensions.”
Dubai registered Dh11 billion (2.87 million tonnes) worth of foreign trade related to food supply in the first quarter of 2020.
According to the figures from the municipality, Dubai had imported 718,891 tonnes of food in March 2019. Due to the impact of the pandemic, this dropped to 646,221 tonnes in March 2020.
However, the quantity of imported food consignments started rising thereafter. The figures showed that as many as 759,006 tonnes of food items were imported in April and 805,105 tonnes in May.
“The dashboard showed that there was a steady increase further in May, June and July also as against the same months the year before. It was only in September 2020 the import rates reached regular rates,” said Al Hashmi
Did you know?
The UAE’s Food security law ensures adequate and uninterrupted food supplies through wholesalers and retailers across the UAE at all times. It seeks to regulate the strategic stock of food commodities in the country in the event of crises, emergencies and disasters. It offers incentives and facilities to registered providers and merchants, while stipulating various penalties that include imprisonment and fines of up to Dh5 million for violators.
Dr Essam Sharaf Al Hashmi, Head of Food Trade Control, Food Safety Department, Dubai Municipality.
