By 2050, the global population is expected to approach 10 billion, while average incomes are expected to rise by about 60 per cent. As populations and prosperity expand, so does the demand for food, and particularly for a high variety of nutritious and coveted foods, such as animal products and fresh fruit that are resource-intensive to produce and transport.
The UN Food and Agriculture Organisation forecasts that global food production must grow by nearly 70 per cent to meet this burgeoning demand.
Yet today, arable land has shrunk by one third globally since 1961, crop yields are predicted to fall a further 24 per cent due to land degradation and extreme weather, and conflicts will continue to disrupt supply chains, all driving up food scarcity worldwide. The need to build more resilient food systems is increasingly urgent – a shared challenge that extends far beyond national borders.
The UAE has leaned into this challenge by investing in innovation and using a well-tested partnership model to generate sustainable and far-reaching impact. Just as the falaj irrigation system transformed agriculture in our region, the UAE remains steadfast in its belief that creating these reliable food systems of the future requires ground-breaking technologies. And these technologies cannot be translated into real-world solutions without the right ecosystem of partners, investors, incubators and policymakers.
The good news is that around the world, game-changing innovations for food security already exist.
In Sri Lanka, bio-acoustic sensors on coconut palms are providing early warnings of infestation by the highly destructive red palm weevil – responsible for $2 billion in estimated crop losses worldwide. In Kenya, AI-powered smart bins are converting household waste into low-cost organic fertiliser, boosting harvests for smallholder farms while reducing reliance on synthetic fertilisers and easing pressure on soil and the environment.
And in the UAE, high-tech farming systems are harnessing microalgae to convert arid desert into arable land. These are just a glimpse of the many promising innovations reshaping the future of food security.
But just as crops require soil, water, nutrients and care, these technologies need a robust and supportive ecosystem to evolve into market-ready solutions that can be used at scale. Funding, mentoring, test beds, innovation-friendly policy and opportunities for partnership – without all these elements working together, even the most promising innovations cannot reach their full potential.
This is the guiding principle of the FoodTech Challenge – a flagship venture competition that identifies and supports the most promising agrifood technologies already working in arid, hot climates – conditions that define the UAE and much of the world, where desertification undermines crop yields for 1.7 billion people. Previous winners of the competition – now in its third edition – have gone on to raise more than $48 million in follow-on funding for research and development and new market expansion.
Meanwhile, access to our extensive network of local and international partners has enabled more than 50 pilot projects, which are already delivering tangible results in the UAE.
The FoodTech Challenge is part of a much larger national ecosystem for food security, guided by the UAE National Food Security Strategy and ambitions to become the world’s most food-secure nation by 2051.
This world-class ecosystem focuses on bringing forth the most innovative solutions through public-private partnerships, regulatory sandboxes and test beds, venture co-investment and accelerator support. Just one such example is Silal Innovation Oasis, a 300,000-square metre agri-tech R&D hub in Al Ain where climate-resilient and controlled-environment farming technologies are tested under real desert conditions, accelerating the path from prototype to scale.
Through initiatives that identify, convene and support global innovators and their brilliant ideas, we are building capacity and delivering impact at a local level, but also scaling proven solutions around the world. The fact that all of the active FoodTech Challenge winners of previous editions of the competition are already operating in the UAE – or have chosen to relocate their headquarters to the country – is a strong signal that the right conditions for innovation have already taken root.
Last week’s announcement of the FoodTech Challenge’s third edition winners during Abu Dhabi Sustainability Week represents another crucial milestone in strengthening our innovation ecosystem. This is a collective responsibility, but also a significant opportunity, because food security is a vital route to a more prosperous, inclusive, sustainable future for all.
