Caterer Food & Business Conference 2014 opens

Today (March 18, 2014) food and beverage professionals from across the Middle East’s respected restaurants and hotels are gathering in Dubai to attend the third annual Caterer Middle East Food & Business Conference.

Hosted at The Ritz-Carlton DIFC, culinary and F&B directors, restaurant managers, restaurateurs, executive chefs and head chefs from across the region have come together to discuss the opportunities for growth and debate key challenges facing the food and beverage industry.

Atelier M founder Mohammad Islam, who is one of the speakers today, said he believes the conference is a great opportunity to meet people and obtain quality feedback. When queried about the biggest challenge facing the Middle East F&B industry at this point of time, he added: "I think the biggest challenge in the region is the availability of high quality products. Vegetables, fruits, not frozen, fresh seasonable products are also hard to attain."

Zuma Dubai executive chef A. Refaie Othman is participating in the conference for the first time, and said he was "quite excited to see what it is all about". He added: "I do not come with many expectations, as I love to be surprised." Othman said one the biggest challenge is the ability to find kitchen staff who truly have a passion for cooking.

The conference will discuss everything from making mid-market restaurants profitable to working with suppliers to combat rising food costs, from the practice of poaching to the future of F&B in the region.

For anyone who isn't able to make today's event, the Caterer Middle East team will be keeping you updated on all the interesting news and views as they surface throughout the day via our Twitter feed - so do follow us on @CatererME and use the official hashtag #Caterer2014 to join the conversation.

To find out more about the Caterer Middle East Food & Business Conference make sure to check out our event preview detailing exactly what you can expect to see and hear about today.