UAE leads $22bn Arab food and beverage investment drive as sector creates 93,000 jobs

In its third sectoral report for 2025 on the Arab food and beverage sector, issued at its headquarters in Kuwait, Arab Investment and Export Credit Guarantee Corporation (Dhaman) said that the UAE accounted for 45 per cent of all inter-Arab food and beverage projects and 58 per cent of total inter-Arab capital expenditure, underlining its position as the region’s primary investment hub for the sector.

Dhaman’s analysis shows that between January 2003 and December 2024, 12 Arab countries invested in 108 inter-Arab food and beverage projects, representing around 21 per cent of total FDI projects in the sector.

UAE leads Arab F&B investment

These investments were implemented by 65 companies, with combined capital expenditure of $6.5bn — 30 per cent of total FDI Capex — and created nearly 28,000 jobs.

The UAE led all Arab countries by a wide margin, reflecting its role as a manufacturing base, logistics gateway and regional export platform for food and beverage producers.

Across the wider region, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Morocco and Qatar together attracted 421 FDI projects, accounting for 82 per cent of the total.

These projects generated more than $17bn in Capex, or 79 per cent of the total, and created 71,000 jobs, equivalent to 76 per cent of all employment generated by the sector over the period.

Global investment

The report, is based on four pillars:

• Sales until 2029
• Arab foreign trade for 2024
• FDI projects between 2003 and 2024
• An assessment of investment and business risks in 2024

It identified the United States as the largest foreign investor in the Arab food and beverage sector over the past 22 years.

US companies invested in 74 projects, representing 14 per cent of total FDI projects, with Capex of approximately $4bn, or 18 per cent of the total, and created more than 14,000 jobs.

The sector’s top 10 foreign investors accounted for around 15 per cent of all projects, 32 per cent of total Capex and 29 per cent of newly created jobs. Swiss Nestlé Company led by number of projects with 14, while Ukraine’s NIBULON Company ranked first by capital investment and employment, with $2bn in Capex and 6,000 jobs.

UAE among top-ranked investment destinations

Using Fitch Ratings’ risk and reward indicators covering 14 Arab countries, Dhaman ranked the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Egypt and Qatar as the most attractive markets for food and beverage investment in 2024. They were followed by Oman, Bahrain, Algeria, Morocco and Kuwait.

Food and non-alcoholic beverage sales across 16 Arab countries are expected to rise by 8.6 per cent to exceed $430bn by the end of 2025, accounting for 4.2 per cent of global sales. The total is forecast to surpass $560bn by 2029.

Sales remain highly concentrated, with Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Algeria, the UAE and Iraq together accounting for roughly 77 per cent of total regional sales by the end of 2025.

By product category, meat and poultry are projected to lead with 27 per cent of total food sales, valued at around $106bn, followed by cereals, pasta and baked goods with sales of $63bn, representing 16 per cent.

Average annual per capita spending on food and non-alcoholic beverages in the Arab region is forecast to increase by 7.2 per cent to more than $1,845 by the end of 2025, approaching the global average of $2,048, before rising further to around $2,255 by the end of 2029.

Average household expenditure on food and non-alcoholic beverages in 13 Arab countries is also expected to reach 25.8 per cent of total household spending, exceeding the global average of 24.2 per cent.

Trade expansion

Arab external trade in food and non-alcoholic beverages rose by more than 15 per cent to approximately $195bn in 2024.

The UAE, Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Iraq and Morocco accounted for 70 per cent of this total, driven by an 18 per cent increase in exports to $56bn and a 14 per cent rise in imports to $139bn.

The top 10 exporting countries to the Arab region supplied around 53 per cent of its food and non-alcoholic beverage imports, valued at $73.5bn, with Brazil leading at $16.5bn, or 12 per cent.

Meanwhile, the top 10 importing countries from the region accounted for 60 per cent of Arab food and non-alcoholic beverage exports, worth $33.5bn, with Saudi Arabia ranking first as the region’s largest importer at $6.6bn, or 12 per cent.