A recent report by the Dubai Chamber of Commerce and Industry revealed that the UAE is among the 10 most-consuming countries in the world for consumption of bottled water in terms of per capita share, indicating that despite the large production in the country of this water, the UAE consumes large quantities of bottled water, due to hot weather, And the growing population and tourists. He indicated that the total retail sales of bottled water in the UAE amounted to about 1.8 billion dirhams, and it is expected that these sales will grow by 2.8% by 2023.
The report stated that the bottled distilled water was the largest in terms of sales in the UAE, with a share of 95% of the total types of bottled water, and achieved its highest levels in 2018, and its sales value reached 1.72 billion dirhams (1.16 billion liters), with a growth rate of 10% in terms of Value, and an increase of 6.3% in quantity compared to the previous year.
Annual growth
The report pointed out that in the period from 2013 to 2018, this type of water recorded a cumulative annual growth of the value and volume of sales at rates of 9.3% and 6.6%, respectively, pointing out that the average price per liter of distilled water rose from 1.3 dirhams to 1.5 dirhams in the same period .
He stressed that the bottled water market in the UAE is characterized by high competitiveness, and the top 10 companies with a share of 75% of the market formed, indicating that when choosing bottled water most consumers pay attention to the levels of sodium and acidity, which gives incentives to the producing companies to compete in these standards. Local companies are also applying innovative approaches to attract new consumers, such as vitamin D-added water, to help people who are deficient in this vitamin.
Emirates imports
According to the Federal Customs Authority, UAE imports of bottled water registered a growth of 29%, rising from 41 million dirhams in 2017 to 53 million in 2018. In addition, the quantities imported by the UAE from the world of bottled water achieved their highest levels, which amounted to 21.3 Million liters in 2018, with a growth rate of 10% compared to 2017.
The report indicated that the UAE is a center for the trade of natural water, in 2018 about a third of the natural water imported was re-exported to other countries. The data of the Federal Customs Authority showed that the country's re-exports of natural water increased from 14 million dirhams in 2017 to 16 million dirhams in 2018, with an annual growth rate of 14%. In addition, the amount of re-exports between 2017 and 2018 registered a growth of 51% , Reaching its highest level at 4.8 million liters.
International partners
He stated that when looking at the data of the quantity of imports of these products in 2018, we find that the largest partner was Turkey (47%), followed by Norway (38%), France (4%), Lithuania (4%), Finland (2%) and countries Others (5%).
The report indicated that the countries of the Gulf Cooperation Council are the UAE's largest partners in re-exports of bottled water, with a share of 91%, stressing that companies in the UAE have the opportunity to re-export bottled water imported from European countries to China, Japan, Hong Kong and Singapore, which is one of the 10 largest countries Imported of natural water in the world.
The UAE exports locally bottled water to other countries, with a value of about 5.9 million dirhams, and an amount of 11 million liters in the past year, as Oman was the largest importer of bottled water in the Emirates, with a share of 87%, followed by Saudi Arabia (6%), Kuwait ( 2%) and other countries (5%).
The fastest growing categories
The Dubai Chamber report expected that bottled water with added ingredients will be the fastest growing category of bottled water in the UAE, providing additional health and functional benefits, and may contain added elements such as vitamins, minerals, acids, herbs, fruits or uncooked vegetables. The high levels of obesity and diabetes in the UAE could prompt consumers to switch from sparkling drinks to bottled water with added ingredients in the future.
Other factors may also affect the consumption of bottled water, such as the selective tax on sweetened beverages, which may increase the demand for distilled bottled water. The report called on bottled water trade and manufacturing companies to study new consumption trends, in addition to laws and also diversify their sales accordingly, stressing that there are great opportunities to diversify bottled water exports to Asian countries.
Retail sales of bottled water in the UAE amounted to 1.8 billion dirhams.