ADNEC Group is continuing to prepare for the leading virtual conference for the food, beverage, and hospitality sector, the F&B Networking Hub by SIAL Middle East – E-summit and Meetings. The virtual event will be held as part of the SIAL ME brand, in collaboration with Compexposium. It will run in conjunction with the Abu Dhabi Date Palm Virtual Platform under the supervision of the Khalifa International Award for Date Palm and Agricultural Innovation, on 23 November 2020.

The unique format of the event was developed by ADNEC and contains virtual sessions, held from 1:00pm to 3:00pm. The event will allow international exhibitors specialised in the food, beverage, hospitality and the dates industry to meet virtually and conduct business. The event was introduced as a response to ongoing global measures to limit the spread of COVID-19.

Participants will focus on the challenges facing the global food, beverage, hospitality and dates industry following the pandemic, as well as the opportunities for the sector over the upcoming 24 months. Discussions will focus on ongoing strategies and policies to meet the priorities of the National Food Security Strategy 2051.

Her Excellency Mariam bint Mohammed Saeed Hareb AlMheiri, Minister of State for Food and Water Security, will deliver a welcoming speech, discussing ‘The Role of UAE in Supporting the Food Security Sector’. Subsequently, the opening session will include His Excellency Saeed Al Bahri Salem Al Ameri, Director General of Abu Dhabi Agriculture and Food Safety Authority (ADAFSA), who will be discussing food control and ADAFSA’s strategy; His Excellency Mohamed bin Obaid Al Mazrooei, President and Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Arab Authority for Agricultural Investment and Development (AAAID) will discuss ‘Agri-food Investment in the Arab World’; and His Excellency Rashid Abdul Karim Al Balooshi, Undersecretary of Abu Dhabi Department of Economic Development (ADDED), will be speaking on ‘The Role of ADDED in Supporting the Agriculture and Food International Investors’.

The event will include nine live sessions. During the first session, His Excellency Salmeen Al Ameri, CEO of Al Dahra Agriculture Company, and Mansoor Al Marar, Acting Director of Commercial Zone Development at Khalifa Industrial Zone Abu Dhabi (KIZAD), will discuss ‘Agri-food Growth and Entrepreneurship in the UAE’. His Excellency Eng. Jamal Salem Al Dhaheri, CEO of Silal Food and Technology, and Mohamed Jouan Al Dhaheri, Chairman of RainMKRS Capital Investment LLC, will lead the second session, discussing technology-enabled food supply and production.

His Excellency Mohamed Helal Al-Muhairi, Director General of Abu Dhabi Chamber, will chair the third session. His Excellency will discuss ‘Virtual Connections to Expand Trade Channels and Support Growing New Businesses’. Subsequently, in the fourth session, His Excellency Dr. Abdelouahhab Zaid, Secretary General of the Khalifa International Award for Date Palm and Agricultural Innovation, will discuss ‘Date Production and Export: from Local Traditions to Worldwide Expertise’.

In the fifth session, Mubarak Al Ameri, Executive Director of the Outreach Sector at the Khalifa Fund for Enterprise Development, will discuss ‘Entrepreneurship and Develop Thriving and Competitive SMEs in the UAE’. Dr. Heiko Borchert, Managing Director of Borchert Consulting and Research AG, will speak on food security and geoeconomic assertiveness during the sixth session.

Nicolas Trentesaux, the CEO of the SIAL Global Network, will then discuss with participants ‘Predicting Food and Beverage Trends: The Role of Food Exhibitions in Supporting the Agri-Food Sector’, in the seventh session. The eighth session will discuss the hospitality sector, led by Jonathan Dowse, Executive Director at Capital Hospitality.

In the final session, Yusuff Ali, Chairman and Managing Director of LuLu Group International, and Katarzyna Rzeźniczek, First Counsellor and Representative of the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development at the Embassy of the Republic of Poland in Abu Dhabi, will speak about the topic ‘From Field to Fork – Maintaining Sustainability and the Highest Food & Drink Quality Standards in the Supply Chain’.

Derar AlManaseer, Director of Strategy Management & Excellence, Abu Dhabi National Exhibitions Company (ADNEC), will deliver the closing remarks.

Alongside the event, ADNEC will host a private virtual platform for five days, starting from 23 November. The platform will facilitate live meetings between sellers and buyers, allowing them to do business with one another.

Commenting on the event, Humaid Matar Al Dhaheri, Managing Director and Group CEO of ADNEC, said: "At ADNEC, we are keen on supporting our partners’ and stakeholders’ business performance. To enable that, we have placed strategic investments in our technological infrastructure and our dynamic facilities. The result is an event which brings together decision makers from the food, beverage, and hospitality sectors, helping strengthen international co-operation in the industry: critical as we plan for life after the pandemic.

“Through this event, we continue to be committed to the goals of the National Food Security Strategy. In addition, ADNEC continues to seek to transfer and localise knowledge, attracting global expertise.

Saeed Bin Khadim Al Mansoori, Executive Director of SIAL Middle East Exhibition, said: “We are proud of having created an exceptional event that will bring together distinguished experts, helping to build a more robust local and international industry. With over 15 speakers from the global food and beverage industry, our platform will host over 900 virtual meetings during the event. We are anticipating over 500 participants to attend, with representatives from over 80 selling companies and 60 buying companies during the five days.”

The strategic partners of F&B Networking Hub by SIAL Middle East – E-summit & Meetings are the Abu Dhabi Agriculture and Food Safety Authority and the Khalifa International Award for Date Palm and Agricultural Innovation. Abu Dhabi Chamber will be the host sponsor, IMLO International will be the Diamond sponsor, and Lulu Group International will be the event’s retail partner.

For more information on the F&B Networking Hub by SIAL Middle East – E-summit & Meetings, please visit https://www.sialme.com/fnb-networkinghub/