How the Arab region can catch up with the future of food

How the Arab region can catch up with the future of food

DUBAI: Lab-grown meat may sound like an unpalatable sci-fi concoction, but thanks to new innovations in cellular agriculture, combined with growing consumer demand for sustainable alternatives, test-tube T-bones could soon be on the menu.

Threats to global food systems and agriculture have come to the fore since the COVID-19 pandemic disrupted regional value chains, heightening awareness about the importance of public health and regulation of new scientific techniques.

For the Middle East in particular, the crisis has been a wake-up call for policymakers acutely aware they have fallen behind in the food sciences “” a gap that Saudi Arabia and the UAE are now hopeful they can close.

"Food science is definitely something that's missing here,“ Prince Khaled bin Alwaleed bin Talal Al-Saud, founder and CEO of KBW Ventures, said during a recent virtual panel discussion on "The Future of Food: New Tastes, New Priorities, New Technologies.“

Vegetarian alternatives to burgers and sausages, revived by start-ups like Beyond Meat and Impossible Burger, are enjoying a certain enthusiasm that meat giants also want to enjoy. (AFP/File Photo)

"We've voiced it a bunch of times and we are actually working with the UAE government to establish some sort of ecosystem to develop that.“

The panel discussion, organized as