United Arab Emirates Canned Food Market - Strategic Insights and Forecasts (2023-2028)

The United Arab Emirates canned food market is estimated to grow at a CAGR of 3.81%, reaching US$325.872 million in 2028 from US$250.789 million in 2021.

The UAE offers one of the best living standards and the most diverse economies in the world. Oil, tourism, and the meat industry are the main sectors that sustain the nation's gross domestic product. UAE residents consume a lot of meat, which leads to a large demand for canned meat products there.

According to the USDA, the UAE will consume 445,000 metric tons of meat in 2022. Additionally, the United Arab Emirates canned food market is being boosted by a rise in the availability of canned meat items like the canned corned beef halal from Argentina Company, the canned chicken luncheon meat from Zwan, the canned chicken meatballs from La Lola, and others. The United Arab Emirates' trend for organic food is another factor contributing to the increase in canned food.

United Arab Emirates Canned Food Market Growth Drivers:

• Rise in online purchase of goods

Many customers in the United Arab Emirates choose online delivery methods and buy food and beverage products from online retailers. To attract customers and keep their market share, this led to several retailers growing their online presence. This preserved the need for daily necessities, such as frozen desserts, while adhering to the government's social segregation regulations. For instance, Waitrose & Partners introduced Waitrose.ae, a new online store in the United Arab Emirates, in October 2020. The store will sell 15,000 products, including frozen food items, to customers in Dubai and Abu Dhabi.

• Rising demand for convenience and ready-to-eat food

Customers in the United Arab Emirates need ready-to-eat meals and other convenience foods. The United Arab Emirates' canned food market demand is being fueled by research and development that is producing new and inventive frozen food technologies that are used in food products. Due to their busy schedules, which prevent them from spending much time cooking, customers are drawn to frozen meals, but they still need food items with good nutritional content. Additionally, consumers are drawn to convenience food goods because they are more widely available through various sales channels, including both online and offline availability.

• Increase in tourism and urban population

Increased urbanization and a large percentage of tourists and workers are fueling the canned food goods in the United Arab Emirates. For instance, according to Dubai's Department of Economy and Tourism (DET), the city welcomed 7.28 million foreign guests between January and December 2021, an increase of 32% year over year (YoY). The increase in consumers (both locals and visitors) is driving up demand for canned food items.

Modern consumers in the nation have sophisticated food buying and eating habits; they spend money on high-quality and healthful food due to the increased urban population in the United Arab Emirates, for instance, as per the World Bank, the urban population increased from 66% in 2021 to 67% in 2022. To meet the needs of this expanding consumer sector, most of the food and beverage chains continue to develop and experiment with a variety of product offers and business methods.

• Accelerating demand for online distribution channels

The growing adoption of digital tools, improvement in living standards, and emphasis on promoting ease & efficiency in purchasing activities are accelerating the demand for online distribution platforms in the United Arab Emirates. Also, the growing internet access and smartphone subscription have provided a positive market range for the online platform, thereby augmenting the United Arab Emirates' canned food market growth. According to the World Bank’s data, in 2021, 63% of the UAE’s total population was using the internet, which represented a significant increase of 9% over 2019’s percentage share.

• Government initiatives to bolster the UAE’s digital economy

The favorable government initiatives to bolster the UAE’s digital economy, coupled with increasing online food sales, are acting as an additional driving factor. For instance, in April 2022, the UAE government launched the “UAE Digital Economy Strategy,” which aims to double the digital economy’s contribution to the UAE’s GDP from 9.7% (as of April 2022) to 19.4% within the next ten years. Also, according to the Dubai Chamber of Commerce and Industry, in 2020, online food sales reached US$412 million.

Furthermore, the well-established presence of various online platforms for buying canned food in the UAE has further paved the way for further United Arab Emirates canned food market growth. For instance, Golden Grains Foodstuff Trading (GGFT) is a HACCP (Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Point) certified e-commerce platform that provides 15,000 F&B products across households in the UAE. The e-commerce platform provides canned food of varied types, including corn, tomato, fish, pickles, beans, and pineapples, among others.

United Arab Emirates Canned Food Market Key Developments

• In June 2021, UnMeat, the plant-based canned food brand of Century Pacific Food, was introduced in the United Arab Emirates. As per the source, the brand gained a store footprint of over 200 outlets in the country.

United Arab Emirates Canned Food Market Scope