The regional food and logistics centre will be located in Abu Dhabi's Khalifa Industrial Zone and will cover three and a half square kilometres (KIZAD). It is being created by the Abu Dhabi Ports Group (AD Ports) and the Ghassan Aboud Group, a UAE-based conglomerate, in conjunction with Rungis, the world's largest food wholesale market in Paris.

On the sidelines of a press conference following the facility's official groundbreaking ceremony, Abdullah Al Hameli, head of AD Port's Economic Cities and Freezone Cluster, told that the food hub by the end of the year, it is projected to be operational.

The facility, according to Captain Mohamed Juma Al Shamisi, managing director and group chief executive officer of AD Ports, would help the UAE reach the top of the Global Food Security Index by 2051.

Proteins, fish, legumes, rice, fruits, vegetables, dairy products, dry goods, and fresh flowers will all benefit from the hub. Trading pavilions, logistical services, cold storage, warehouse facilities, waste recycling, and key government services and other amenities will be available in the surrounding environment.

Ghassan Aboud, founder and chairman of the Ghassan Aboud Group, stated that the development will create almost 20,000 jobs over the next five years.

In 2019, work on the project began. Al Hameli said that when it is operating, it will have a distinct name to aid recognition.

'Four warehouses totaling 80,000 square metres are currently more than half-completed,' he said, adding that 'additional expansion will be conducted.'

One of the hub's key functions, modelled after the Rungis International Market in Paris, will be to enhance local farmers' access to markets.

'Food hubs like this keep supplies secure for a variety of reasons. On site, there is a significant amount of storage. Once we introduce many more suppliers by making it easy for to deliver food into a region, then [there is a] diversification of supply and food security. Importantly, as the country's agriculture industry develops, a platform like this would enable access to markets for farmers. One of the difficulties for food producers [occurs when] they cannot find a market, so they invest their energy in something else. 'A platform like this not only develops markets, but it also enhances them,' said Graham Sanders, the Ghassan Aboud Group's chief executive officer of special projects.

The hub's proximity to the Khalifa Port should enable connectivity via sea, air, road, and eventually rail, thanks to the integrated commerce and logistic platforms offered at KIZAD.

While food companies and wholesalers have yet to express interest in the project, officials stated that the Parisian Rungis market now houses 1,200 businesses and serves 18 million people. Thailand, on the other hand, has a similar market with 4,000 businesses.

'We want to imitate Rungis' success and the way it supports communities [in Paris].' We can also contribute to the UAE's food security by doing so,' Al Hameli noted.

The issues faced during the COVID-19 crisis, according to Stephane Layani, chairman and chief executive officer of Rungis, "demand for supply chain management in which wholesale markets play a crucial role."

'Our goal is to build a global network of wholesale marketplaces that can connect with one another, providing significant strength to the food supply chain and ensuring crucial food security.' The construction of this next generation of infrastructure in Abu Dhabi would be achievable with our backing and the leadership of our partners, he continued.