Abu Dhabi's Emirates Bio Farm is open for private bookings

Looking for new ways to get outside and make the most of the winter weather? The UAE's largest private organic farm might have exactly what you're searching for.

After being closed for almost one year, owing to restrictions in place because of the global pandemic, Emirates Bio Farm has reopened to the public with a new visitor experience.

Guests can now reserve a private group tour and sunset session at the farm, which is located in the Al Ain desert.

Running from 3pm until 8pm, the experience starts off with an in-depth tour of the farm, which spans some 250,000 square kilometres. Everyone will find out more about organic farming and get the chance to hand-harvest some seasonal vegetables such as beetroot, carrot or kale under the watchful eye of one of the farm guides.

There's also a tractor tour – where guests can sit back and relax as they're towed around the site to see more of the organic farmland.

Afterwards, the team at Emirates Bio Farm will transport everyone to the on-site desert tent which has a majlis seating area and views over the surrounding dunes, perfect for watching the sunset.

A barbecue grill will be set up and staff will light the camp fire to keep everyone warm. There will be tea, coffee and water on offer and guests can either opt to bring their own food to cook on the grill, or book the catering packages that include dishes made freshly from farm produce.

As well as organic appetisers and salads, there's a seasonal organic vegetarian menu, an earthen-oven cooked lamb option or a barbecued meat package, with a minimum of 10 people required for both meat-based choices.

Emirates Bio Farm is part of the Abu Dhabi emirate, so visitors coming from Dubai will need to show a negative PCR or DPI test to cross the border. It takes about an hour to reach Emirates Bio Farm from Dubai, and about one hour and 45 minutes from the capital.

The private tour costs Dh2,000 per booking, and is for a group of up to 20 people. Optional catered packages start from an additional Dh140 per person. This private tour and barbecue experience is the first of several new initiatives at Emirates Bio Farm, with more activities set to be rolled out over the next few weeks.

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Mercer, the investment consulting arm of US services company Marsh & McLennan, expects its wealth division to at least double its assets under management (AUM) in the Middle East as wealth in the region continues to grow despite economic headwinds, a company official said.

Mercer Wealth, which globally has $160 billion in AUM, plans to boost its AUM in the region to $2-$3bn in the next 2-3 years from the present $1bn, said Yasir AbuShaban, a Dubai-based principal with Mercer Wealth.

“Within the next two to three years, we are looking at reaching $2 to $3 billion as a conservative estimate and we do see an opportunity to do so,” said Mr AbuShaban.

Mercer does not directly make investments, but allocates clients’ money they have discretion to, to professional asset managers. They also provide advice to clients.

“We have buying power. We can negotiate on their (client’s) behalf with asset managers to provide them lower fees than they otherwise would have to get on their own,” he added.

Mercer Wealth’s clients include sovereign wealth funds, family offices, and insurance companies among others.

From its office in Dubai, Mercer also looks after Africa, India and Turkey, where they also see opportunity for growth.

Wealth creation in Middle East and Africa (MEA) grew 8.5 per cent to $8.1 trillion last year from $7.5tn in 2015, higher than last year’s global average of 6 per cent and the second-highest growth in a region after Asia-Pacific which grew 9.9 per cent, according to consultancy Boston Consulting Group (BCG). In the region, where wealth grew just 1.9 per cent in 2015 compared with 2014, a pickup in oil prices has helped in wealth generation.

BCG is forecasting MEA wealth will rise to $12tn by 2021, growing at an annual average of 8 per cent.

Drivers of wealth generation in the region will be split evenly between new wealth creation and growth of performance of existing assets, according to BCG.

Another general trend in the region is clients’ looking for a comprehensive approach to investing, according to Mr AbuShaban.

“Institutional investors or some of the families are seeing a slowdown in the available capital they have to invest and in that sense they are looking at optimizing the way they manage their portfolios and making sure they are not investing haphazardly and different parts of their investment are working together,” said Mr AbuShaban.

Some clients also have a higher appetite for risk, given the low interest-rate environment that does not provide enough yield for some institutional investors. These clients are keen to invest in illiquid assets, such as private equity and infrastructure.

“What we have seen is a desire for higher returns in what has been a low-return environment specifically in various fixed income or bonds,” he said.

“In this environment, we have seen a de facto increase in the risk that clients are taking in things like illiquid investments, private equity investments, infrastructure and private debt, those kind of investments were higher illiquidity results in incrementally higher returns.”

The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, one of the largest sovereign wealth funds, said in its 2016 report that has gradually increased its exposure in direct private equity and private credit transactions, mainly in Asian markets and especially in China and India. The authority’s private equity department focused on structured equities owing to “their defensive characteristics.”

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