Sheikh Dr Majid Sultan Al Qassimi is Founder of Soma Mater. He explains why food security and sustainability go hand in hand, and discusses the steps required to address the challenges of food production - and food waste - in the UAE and wider region.
Meet the agents of change: Sheikh Dr Majid Sultan Al Qassimi
You promote ‘radical transparency across every aspect of the UAE food system’. What are the priorities for sector stakeholders in driving this forward?
The barrier to change in the past has been a lack of collaboration and communication between industry players and policy makers. There is a disconnect between stakeholders in understanding the challenges and potential solutions for making the food systems more equitable, accessible and sustainable.
Data plays a significant role in allowing organisations and policymakers to establish baselines and to make informed decisions while tracking the effectiveness of a given policy or strategy. With this in mind, the UAE is still working on finding the best way to collect and communicate this information. Soma Mater has been working to solve this through strategic projects, stakeholder engagement, advisory and publication of white papers on key food system challenges.
We believe that through radical transparency we can begin to make forward progress.
The UAE has set ambitious goals for food independence by 2050 but with regional historical dependence on food imports. What needs to be done to get buy-in from the public as well as food importers?
Achieving these goals will require a shift in cultural norms and consumer preferences, including a local offering, which we believe the UAE is ready for. There is an increase in demand for organic, carbon footprint-friendly and diverse produce, which will drive the shift.
Education and awareness campaigns help consumers understand the importance of buying local produce and the benefits of supporting local farmers and producers. We don’t believe that local produce should be more expensive than what we are currently spending on European and American imported products. The UAE government can also further invest in research and development to improve local food production practices while developing policies that promote sustainable agriculture and food production, which will make local food products more affordable long-term.
Food importers could also be incentivised to source more locally produced food as, ultimately, they are fulfilling a consumer need. Typically, the challenge is in finding quantities of quality product, and so the challenge starts with matching the needs of consumers, and then the price. This is easier said than done, but we work with policy makers to help create ecosystems and possible solutions to this challenge.
Do regional governments need to introduce more stringent legislation on food waste and the stocking of locally or regionally grown or produced alternatives?
If we look at the UAE as an example, we definitely need to consider strengthening legislation on food waste as, currently, there is no direct legislation implemented to tackle this issue other than the handful of goals mentioned in the National Food Security Strategy.
Elsewhere, France has implemented strict legislation to combat food waste including laws that prohibit supermarkets from throwing away unsold food and requires them to donate edible surplus to food banks. Italy and Spain have also followed suit and these steps, and this approach has been successful in reducing food waste and promoting a more sustainable food system.
Although redirecting food waste from landfill is an approach that shows positive results, Soma believes that legislation should target the prevention stage of the food waste chain. Through education, awareness and behavioural nudges there will be more significant impact than at the repurposing stage.
For the UAE, the challenge of policy is actually seeing implementation and regulation across the country. As a federal state it become a very complex multistakeholder implementation.
You reference the trifecta of technology, sustainable agriculture and traditional practices as drivers of a food production revolution in the region. What challenges and opportunities are defining this step change?
The UAE faces significant challenges in increasing domestic agricultural production and revamping supply chains to make local supply to market more significant, but full food independence is not the goal.
With limited water availability and arable land, the UAE is compelled to resort to finding other ways to develop its agriculture sector, but trade will always be part of the mix of supply. A big portion of research and funding is allocated to vertical farming and hydroponics which solve both soil and water issues; the amount that can be grown in these systems, however, is still limited.
Furthermore, focusing on produce that can grow naturally in such arid environments is also worth exploring, and many traditional and more sophisticated techniques allow for a wider variety of fruits and vegetables. The International Center for Bio-saline Agriculture plays an important role in identifying such practices and which food items can grow in harsh environments. By investing in agtech solutions, promoting sustainable food production and distribution, supporting innovation in the food sector, and funding research, the UAE is well-positioned to improving its food independence, which in turn improves food security in the region.
What can we learn from other countries when it comes to different approaches to food waste and food security, and what can other nations learn from the UAE?
Countries leading the way in tackling food waste include France, Italy and Spain. South Korea also has very successful legislation in place and a ‘pay-per-throw’ system in specific neighbourhoods where households segregate their food waste and pay for the amount they throw away.
The UAE can also share its experiences and best practices with other countries, particularly those with similar food waste profiles, such as Saudi Arabia and Qatar, who rely on importing the majority of their food. The UAE's success in repurposing food waste and reducing food waste through education and awareness campaigns can be an example for other countries to follow. In December 2023, Ne’ma, the UAE’s national food waste and loss initiative, published a report detailing a number of ‘key nudge’ pilot studies conducted in schools. The results are promising and prove that such projects should be rolled out on a larger scale.
Is there a pressing need to plug the current skills/talent gap until such a time as the next generation of STEM focused employees and leaders are ready to join the workforce, or is this momentum already growing?
The UAE, and other countries in the region, are facing a significant green skills gap, where demand for sustainability expertise is outpacing the supply of talent. This shortage of workers with the necessary skills to fill green jobs is a major challenge.
To address this gap, we need to focus on upskilling the existing workforce and inspiring the next generation to pursue STEM subjects and sustainability-focused career paths. Training programmes to build sustainability literacy, critical thinking, green retrofitting, and other in-demand green skills across various industries and functions must be implemented.
Stakeholders should also look into partnering with educational institutions and organisations to engage youth and expose them to sustainability-focused career opportunities. In the UAE, initiatives like the FoodTech Challenge are good examples of properly executed programmes that focus on encouraging more tech driven solutions in order to tackle issues within the food system.