MANILA – Philippine food companies that participated in the Gulfood 2022 in Dubai, United Arab Emirates closed the four-day expo with initial sales amounting to USD23.6 million, or around PHP1.2 billion.
In a statement Wednesday, the Center for International Trade Expositions and Missions (CITEM) said the value is expected to increase as local food firms had business-to-business matching activities at the Gulfood 2022.
According to CITEM, this is the country’s 17th participation in the Gulfood and the largest delegation so far.
Forty-eight Filipino food firms were part of the delegation, with nine of them having physical presence during the four-day expo and 39 showcased their products online.
“The Philippines is a great sourcing destination for food products because of its diverse agricultural landscapes and rich gastronomy. Especially with this pandemic, the demand for healthy and halal-certified food products is high, and the country is poised to be a leader in this category,” CITEM executive director Pauline Suaco-Juan said.
Gulfood is one of the biggest food and hospitality industry expositions in the world mostly participated by businesses that would like to strengthen their presence in the Middle East and Africa.
“Our promotion of Philippine food to UAE and other countries does not end with our participation in Gulfood. We are continuously promoting our export products 24/7, anytime, anywhere through IFEXConnect.com, our B2B (business-to-business) platform for food exporters, and FOODPhilippines.com, our leads generation and promotion platform for Filipino food,” she said.
Suaco-Juan said these websites allowed Filipino enterprises to widen their reach and boost their engagement across the globe.
“Buyers and food enthusiasts who want to know more about Philippine food are welcome to check out our platforms,” she added. (PNA)
