Gulf food security fund to transform sector

Cash will help increase fish farming, with UAE’s coastlines boasting huge potential to produce nutritious food and cut our reliance on imports.

Mamdouh Kawanna, a specialist, feeds fish in one of the tanks at the aquaponic research unit, part of UAE University at Al Ain, where the symposium took place. It was the first such meeting held in thShow more

DUBAI // A regional fund dedicated to aquaculture projects is expected to be set up in the UAE by next year.

Emirates Star Fisheries, in Al Qusais, is hoping to raise enough money by then to create the Food Security Growth Fund.

“We’re doing as much as we can to organise an aquaculture growth fund,” said director Prathapachandra Shetty. “But we don’t have the expertise to create a fund which supports aquaculture activity in the region to contribute to the food security of the Mena [Middle East and North Africa] region.”

The idea was raised at the UAE’s first symposium on arid land aquaculture at UAE University in Al Ain last week and the fund will be used for initiatives across the region.

“We introduced the idea and many people showed interest in the region,” Mr Shetty said. “I strongly feel the local population has a strong support of the idea.”

Through these funded projects, the aim is to increase the production of farmed fish to alleviate the burden of overfishing.

Hammour is overfished seven times more than its stocks can handle, with a number of organisations taking steps to find alternatives.

One UAE food company started using hoki fish in its dishes last month, while the Park Hyatt integrated the Emirates Wildlife Society and World Wide Fund for Nature’s Choose Wisely campaign by using sustainable fish across its hotels’ restaurants in the Emirates.

“Hotels and restaurants can play a crucial role in being part of the solution by empowering consumers through offering sustainable choices and raising awareness of the issue of overfishing,” said Lisa Perry, programme director for EWS-WWF.

Aquaculture projects are another way of doing that. And despite people’s scepticism, the idea works.

“Everyone in the region laughs when we mention aquaculture in the Mena region,” said Mr Shetty. “They say there is very high temperature, salinity, it’s dry and there’s no water to even drink.”

But since Saudi Arabia proved its feasibility by introducing shrimp farming, billions of dollars have been invested in the practice.

“New aquaculture projects are planned in Oman and Yemen,” Mr Shetty said. “We have to promote aquaculture in the region and I believe it will be a major aquaculture hub in the future.”

The deserted areas of GCC countries could be the best platform to demonstrate that.

“When you have 3,000 kilometres of coastline in Oman and in Yemen, you can produce huge nutritional high-value food instead of importing,” said Mr Shetty. “But the awareness is not there right now and the main purpose is to create awareness and show people it is profitable.”

Still, fish farming in the UAE remains relatively small-scale.

“We only have 300 tonnes from shrimp farming in Abu Dhabi, and Fujairah produced on average 300 to 400 tonnes of sea bream,” Mr Shetty said. “But this is just the beginning and it can go up ... if the proper investment is directed to it.”

If organisations take the initiative now, he believes up to 10 per cent of local fish consumption – including caviar, tilapia, cobia and sea bream – could be supplied by aquaculture in two or three years.

“We expect it to be a breakthrough. That number can even double, depending on the speed it is taken on.”

The aim is to raise as much as Dh550 million from government organisations and banks to start funding the projects.

“The groundwork is all done and banks such as Credit Suisse have agreed to do all this,” said Mr Shetty. “High net worth Arab individuals have also expressed interest.

"We have thousands of kilometres of coastlines lying there with no people, some of which have water three to four metres below the ground in the Omani-Saudi desert, so we should convert them into very high-protein, nutritious fish production."

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