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European rice marks grand opening at Gulfood 2023

European rice, an EU-funded promotional programme, marked a grand opening at Gulfood 2023. The mega trade fair runs till 24th February in Dubai at the World Trade Centre.

At the event, European rice displayed not just new and unique varieties of rice, but also showcased some advanced technologies, integrated supply chain solutions and breakthrough developments driving the quality of European rice. Located at ZA'ABEEL HALL Z5-160, European Rice also offered guests and visitors a chance to taste the European rice from Greece.

European rice is popular in its segment across the globe and keeping this in mind, the UAE, and GCC countries among the targets for European rice exports. Greece produces approximately 220,000 tonnes of rice and most of it is cultivated at the northern part of the country, while Greece is among the four most productive European countries for rice.

“We are very excited to be participating at Gulfood 2023. The event has started on a positive note, and we are confident that it will only get better in the coming days. Gulfood is a huge opportunity for us to showcase our innovative range of products and we aspire to be a household name for consumers searching for flavours of Europe,” said Konstantinos Giannopoulos, general manager of EASTH, the union of co-operatives that is in charge for the European rice programme.

European rice found fertile soil in Mediterranean Europe and was grown, loved and became part of European culinary tradition since then. European rice is today distinguished for its quality and nutritional value. It is rich in B-complex vitamins, such as Niacin, Thiamine, Riboflavin and Selenium, while the carbohydrates contained in its endosperm constitute an important source of energy for the human organism.

“Gulfood is an event of international importance. Our participation this year is to showcase to the world European rice’s finest quality, with rich nutrition value. While this platform will help us showcase European rice to a larger audience, it also serves as a stepping stone to understand the consumer and the market in the GCC at a granular level. Considering the response, we have received for our products, we are positive that Gulfood 2023 will help us grow the European rice segment multi-fold,” added Christos Tsichitas, president of EASTH.

The European rice market is sub-divided in two different segments, namely, Indica rice, a long grain variety which represents around 25 per cent of EU rice production and Japonica rice, a short and medium grain variety which is the traditional European rice and represents around 75 per cent of EU rice production.

The 28th edition of the food and catering tradeshow this year focused on sustainability, food costs and the growing importance of Dubai F&B to the global market. In addition, with the UAE preparing to host COP 28 in 2023, Gulfood served as a critical opportunity to convene the global F&B industry and continue the shift towards more sustainable food production and consumption.