The French Trade Commission Ubifrance hosted its first So French So Good event at the Sofitel Jumeirah Beach last week in a new effort to promote France’s F&B sector in the Middle East. It ran as part of the Speciality Food Festival 2011.
Over 120 industry professionals attended the event to meet and greet France’s most prominent exporters and to sample French gastronomy.
Christelle Labernède, head of agribusiness and agricultural affairs at the French Trade Commission Ubifrance, was thrilled at how the event turned out: “It was a very good event for both parties – local importers and distributors and also French companies,” she said.
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“It was a challenge to find sponsors for the new event, but we knew we wanted to create an exclusive event dedicated to local companies. In the end we were happy to gather together all the importers [and] retailers and [hope it] can lead to future cooperation between them."
Going on to talk about the success of the French exhibitors at the Speciality Food Festival, she said: “All the French products were well received and they will be distributed in the near future by major importers and retailers in the UAE market. We received many thanks from all the French companies as well as the local importers, chefs and retailers.”
Ubifrance has received sponsorship offers already for the second So French So Good event and is now even more confident in its Middle East expansion plans.
“In five years I think that French food exports will increase a lot in the GCC, thanks to the development of tourism in Qatar, for example,” said Labernède.
Ubifrance in the UAE will begin to deal with the other countries in the region. We just started one month ago in Qatar, and we have already two offices now in Saudi Arabia.”
French agrifood exports to the Middle East (including Egypt) increased significantly in 2010, with a €1.525 billion (US $2.16 billion) turnover, which was a 45% increase from 2009.
Historically French exports to the Middle East were made up of poultry and dairy products. Today, French producers export more diverse products such as apples, biscuits, chocolates, foie gras, oysters, caviar, tapenades, dips, condiments, mineral water and other beverages.
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