More than 170 Estonian companies are currently exporting their products to the local market
Food companies in Estonia are showing increasing interest in the UAE market
The Estonian pavilion at Gulfood 2022 recorded a growth in the number of participating companies by more than 100%.
From the source
Urmas Kreus: "I see the beginning of a stable and fruitful partnership, with Estonian companies looking to expand and explore the potential of trade in the UAE."
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The Minister of Rural Affairs of the Republic of Estonia, Urmas Krios, confirmed that there is an increasing and remarkable interest among food companies in Estonia in expanding their exports of food, especially organic and healthy, to the UAE and Gulf markets in general.
In an interview with "Emirates Today", he revealed that there are currently more than 170 Estonian companies from various sectors exporting to the UAE in various fields.
"We are at the beginning of a stable and fruitful partnership," he said.
Total Trade Value
In detail, the Minister of Rural Affairs of the Republic of Estonia, Urmas Krios, said that the value of Estonia's exports to the UAE markets during 2021 amounted to 257.3 million dirhams, while the value of imports from the UAE amounted to 275.6 million dirhams.
He added that many companies in the food and beverage industry in Estonia are currently interested in expanding its exports of food, especially organic and healthy foods, to the UAE and the Gulf markets in general, in light of the increasing demand for these types of products.
Post in "Gulfood"
He pointed to the participation of 20 companies specialized in this sector in the activities of the Gulf Food Exhibition "Gulfood 2022", which recently concluded, at a time when the Estonian pavilion recorded a growth in the number of participating companies by more than 100% compared to the 2019 session, i.e. before the "Covid-19" pandemic. ».
He explained that the participating companies offered healthy and organic products, as well as products based on "sustainability" in their manufacture, noting that the most prominent of these products are: fish and seafood, mineral water, drinks and sweets, dairy and cheese, in addition to children's nutrition products.
Kreus added that the companies have also launched innovative food products on their platforms, such as organic chocolate with dried cranberries, and chocolate in the shapes of flowers in different colors.
The Estonian minister affirmed that there is an increasing and remarkable interest of food sector companies in Estonia towards the UAE market, pointing to the export operations to the UAE markets of products such as drinks, snacks, baby food and sweets.
Estonia exports
He revealed that the value of Estonia's exports to the world amounts to about 1.4 billion euros of foodstuffs, 20% of which are dairy products, 15% grains, and 10% fish products.
He said: "Fish is one of the products that enjoy very strong export quotas for us, as we produce more than we consume, which makes it one of the important commodities in the country's food export mix."
The Estonian minister stressed that his country is one of the countries with an open economy, which means that export is important for its companies, pointing out that Estonia is a small country, with a population of 1.3 million people, in which the volume of food production exceeds the consumption of the population, especially grain and dairy products. and fish.
important exports
The Minister of Rural Affairs pointed to the high demand for Estonian cheese, especially from neighboring countries in northern Europe, which are the main importers of raw milk and high-quality dairy products, with a total of 840 thousand tons annually.
Other export commodities include: cereals, berry products, vegetable oils, juices, baby food and mineral water. Estonia has many certified and officially recognized natural mineral water reservoirs.
«Expo 2020 Dubai»
The Estonian minister praised the "Expo 2020 Dubai", considering it "impressive" in light of the impressive organization and efforts made by the UAE.
He said that the "Expo" is an ideal platform for the meeting of peoples and a center that brings people together from different countries.
He believed that "Expo 2020 Dubai" will be one of the things that support opportunities for the growth of trade, investment and tourism relations between the two countries during the coming periods.
He continued, "The focus in our national pavilion is on the experience of our digital society and the electronic revolution, as Estonia enjoys a very good image as a technologically advanced country. Therefore, it is important for us to invest in research and development, in cooperation with companies, to find solutions to develop sustainable food systems."
fruitful partnership
The Estonian minister added, "With Estonian companies finally heading to expand and explore the potential of trade in the UAE, I can see that we are at the beginning of a stable and fruitful partnership, and we can cooperate in many areas."
He said: “There are currently more than 170 Estonian companies from various sectors working in export operations to the UAE in various fields, including engineering and architectural solutions, financial, educational, robotic systems, aviation services, electrical equipment, mechanical devices, furniture, and foodstuffs. ».
With regard to the number of tourists from Estonia to the UAE, he said that despite the challenges posed by the Corona virus pandemic for travel trips, the number of tourists from Estonia was not less than 5,000 tourists during the past year.
The land of lakes and forests
The Minister of Rural Affairs of the Republic of Estonia, Urmas Krios, said that Estonia is located on the northeastern tip of the European Union on the shore of the Baltic Sea, as it is characterized as a country where the land meets the sea, and it is a country with thousands of lakes and deep forests, and has all the conditions related to safety standards and sustainability of food production.
He explained that Estonia is a country with a wild and pure nature, as more than half of it is covered with forests and wetlands, and 23% of its agricultural land is specialized in organic cultivation, making it one of the largest organic farming countries in Europe, and its products are among the cleanest on the planet. Although it does not have mass products, food has always been one of the most important export commodities.
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