For starters, it will add 23,000 jobs to the city…

HH Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice-President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai has unveiled a brand new Dhs5.5 billion Food Park for Dubai’s Wholesale City. 

Where will it be? It will be in the new desert-bound area of Dubai South, 10 minutes from Al Maktoum International Airport and the Expo 2020 Dubai site, and a 15-minute drive from Jebel Ali Free Zone.

What is it? Well, the food complex project, spread over 48 million square feet, will be the first of its kind in the region. There will be a wholesale market where businesses here can buy their food, and there will be a specialised organic waste recycling station. And yes, there will be hotels there too.

It will include an integrated 11,000 square foot free zone dedicated to re-export. So, basically it will help Dubai become a hub in the region for food. The Food Park will be easily accessible via various air, land and marine ports.

The government has also said that it will streamline processes for food companies in the UAE and help decrease supply-chain costs for the growing demand for food in the region – and so, as a knock on effect, it could mean the food we buy in the supermarkets here gets cheaper (because, remember, the soon-to-be-introduced VAT won’t be added to food). 

Most importantly, the government anticipate the Food Park will add 23,000 more jobs to the city.

ALSO READ:
Sheikh Mohammed has penned a poem for Quatar
Dubai is to get its own French Riviera inspired neighbourhood

It will benefit from an integrated format, state-of-the-art infrastructure and future expansion opportunities. Full details are yet to be released but services expected at Dubai Food Park include repackaging, storage, trading and processing.

Figures also released a forecasted food trade value of Dhs23 billion by the year 2030. A proposed completion date was not given, but we’ll be sure to let you know as soon as it is.

Images: Dubai Media Office/ Twitter

– For more about Dubai straight to your newsfeed, follow us on Facebook.