Mar - April 2018 Gulf Agriculture Magazine

MARCH

ISSN 1751-8407

APRIL

2018 TM

YOUR GATEWAY TO THE MIDDLE EAST AGRIBUSINESS

VISIT

US

AT

ORGANIC AND NATURAL PRODUCTS EXPO 2017

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BECK GROUP'S SPECIALIST RANGE OF PLANTER BAGS

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COMMITTED TO BIOSECURITY MANAGEMENT ZIMBABWE’S FARMING IN LIVESTOCK FARMING

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SKRETTING'S MISSION: FEEDING THE FUTURE

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CONTENTS

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Cover photo: Case IH

NEWS UPDATE

PAGE 04

REGIONS FIRST FREE CPD ACCREDITED ANIMAL HEALTH CONFERENCE

PAGE 20

EXPLORING THE FUTURE OF FOOD SECURITY AND FINDING SOLUTIONS

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UAE'S F&B MARKET SHARE TO REACH USD13.2 BILLION BY 2018

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LIGHT4FOOD REINFORCES THE PRIVA PARTNER NETWORK WITH INDOOR GROWING

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EXTREME RANGE WIRELESS EMITTER

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CASE IH RECEIVES GOOD DESIGN® AWARD: THE AUTONOMOUS CONCEPT TRACTOR RECOGNIZED FOR DESIGN EXCELLENCE

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Editor in Chief Mohammed Nasser | Editor Marie Matthew | Associate Editor Andrew Thomas Assistant Editor Megha Mary Matt | Graphic Designer Elizabeth John | Production Manager Abdul Shareef Contributors Neville J. Chandler, Douglas Bott, Shakeeb Kolakadan, Dr. Hansel Geo Thomas Head Office Matt Media International Ltd, Woodgreen, London N22 5AR, UK. E-mail: gulfag@emirates.net.ae, Web site: www.gulfagriculture.com Middle East Office Al Saad Advertising & Publishing L.L.C., P O Box 25694, Sharjah, UAE, Tel:+971 6 5639494, Fax:+971 6 5639449.

Gulf Agriculture is read by agri professionals, farm managers & owners, landscape consultants, contractors, agri-equipment suppliers, horticultural engineers, greenhouse managers, agronomists, veterinary surgeons, ministries, poultry & dairy breeders, importers, distributors, manufacturers and whole salers of food and agri inputs.

Printed and published by Matt Media© Intl. Ltd.(U.K.) 2018 All rights reserved. The opinions and views expressed in this publication are not necessarily those of the publishers. Readers are requested to seek specialist advice before acting on information contained in this publication, which is provided for general use and may not be appropriate for the reader’s particular circumstance. The publishers regret that they cannot accept liability for any error or omissions contained in this publication.

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NEWS UPDATE

Greenyard Horticulture ISO14001 certified

Dubai experiences Great European Products!

A European Food Product Presentation and Lunch took place in THE H HOTEL DUBAI on the 20th of February 2018.

Through a European program called “Great Flavors” campaign financed with the aid from the European Union and Greece, quality products certified with PGI & PDO like gruyere cheese, pistachios, extra virgin olive oil, olives and currants have the opportunity to demonstrate in Dubai audience.

The Export Sales Manager of FAMILY FARM, Ms. Katerina Melissourgaki, from Magnesia Greece supplier of the FETA cheese, represented the program and hosted many guests like importers, distributors, Journalists and cheese buyers to join them for a product presentation and Lunch.

Attendees, watched presentation of the company, tasted all products and discussed with Ms. Melissourgaki the import perspective product in Dubai.

Guests also heard about the nutritional values of all products from well known Nutritionist Karishma Shah.

“In Greece, when we say cheese, we mean only one name: feta. And when we say feta, we mean the white cheese in brine, exclusively from ewe's milk, or mixed with goat's milk, to a rate that does not exceed 30%.

Feta has been a Protected Designation Origin since 1992, and is one of few products whose production does not relate to only one geographical area or place, but almost to the total of mainland Greece”.

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For more than 30 years, the Horticulture division of Greenyard develops and markets customized growing media, mulches and organic soil improvers for both the professional grower and the hobby gardener. In this way, Greenyard lays the foundation for a healthy crop growth.

Greenyard has the intention to be a frontrunner and pioneer in its sector in the field of quality, safety and environment, with the aim to act in a sustainable and socially responsible way. Since 2015, the Management and staff of the Western Europe companies have been involved in the deployment of a Management System for Excellence. In parallel with the ISO9001 Certification of our activities, the social exemplarity of Greenyard Horticulture has already been noted, by obtaining an A grade during the audit of the Business Social Compliance Initiative (BSCI) and total compliance registered according to the Sedex Members Ethical Trade Audit (SMETA).

The 29th of January 2018 is a new milestone in the realization of our company policy with the obtaining of ISO14001v2015 certification of our environmental management system in France and Belgium.

"I am very proud that we are now one of the few companies in our industry with dual ISO 9001 and ISO 14001 certifications." said Sylvie Van Kerrebroek, General Manager of Greenyard Horticulture. "In addition, we take advantage of this important step to disseminate our first sustainability report explaining

our sustainable and socially responsible actions."

Greenyard Horticulture will continue its strong commitment to sustainable development and its efforts to meet the expectations of its stakeholders in the coming years.

Greenyard's Horticulture division is a leading European producer of potting soils, soil improvers and decorative covers for ornamental plant cultivation and the cultivation of mushrooms, vegetables and fruits. We provide a wide range of products to both professional growers and hobby gardeners, fully tailored to their needs. We are also a leading supplier of urban green solutions. By focusing on innovation, quality and service, we make an important contribution to a more sustainable agriculture viable for the grower, healthy and good for the environment.

Valoya Launches a Line of LED Grow Lights for Greenhouses Valoya presented two new product lines at IPM tradeshow held recently in Essen.

The BL-Series are sturdy yet lightweight LED bars optimized for greenhouse cultivation of a wide variety of plants. This new series combines the features of Valoya's recently launched BXSeries, with the chainability feature. Up to 16 luminaires can be daisy chained together with a single mains input making the installation simpler and removing excessive cables.

Additionally, the LED driver is built inside the luminaire further simplifying the handling of the luminaire.

With the light intensity of up to 2,1 μmol/W and a true wide spectrum these luminaires can provide sufficient light for any MARCH APRIL 2018

NEWS UPDATE

plant cultivated in a greenhouse setting. The luminaire is robust and will not be affected by dust or by getting water sprayed on it in powerful jets (Ingress Protection rating - IP66; Impact rating - IK03).

The fixture is slim, compact and easy to handle. The BL120 model is 120 cm (4') long and weighs only 3,2 kg (7.1 lb). A lightweight aluminum casing along with temperature and humidity stabilizing end-caps bring improvements in thermal dissipation, protecting the LED chips from heat caused decay resulting in a longer lifespan of the product (100% efficiency the first 35000 hours after which it drops only 10% for the next 15000 hours and continues operating further on).

The BL-Series is manufactured in Finland. Like all other Valoya's products it has been designed with GMP compliant production facilities in mind.

Organic pumpkins become latest product to join laser labelling revolution Bio Freshi, one of Europe's largest importers and marketers of organic pumpkins, has become the latest fresh produce company to make a commitment to laser labelling, having elected to work with technology specialist Laser Food to introduce the eco-friendly system to its products. The Netherlands-based company, which also markets avocados and mangos, among other products, is using laser labelling to replace wasteful paper labels.

MARCH APRIL 2018

Despite only having purchased Laser Food's Laser Mark system a few short months' ago, Bio Freshi is already actively using the technology to safely add organic and retail logos to a wide range of products, including organic pumpkins, sweet potatoes, cucumbers, coconuts, mangos and avocados. The laser labelled products are initially being sold through grocery retail clients in the Netherlands, but are expected to also be available in the near future in selected supermarket outlets in Germany and Denmark.

Bio Freshi's Oliver Hensel explained that the company initially became interested in laser labelling following the widely-reported agreement between Laser Food and fellow Dutch importermarketer Eosta. “We organised a meeting at Fruit Logistica followed by a second meeting at Biofach, then went to Spain to look at the technology first-hand and speak to some of the existing clients,� recalls Hensel. “Speaking to our clients, we found that everybody was interested in the technology and wanted to make use of it.�

To date, Hensel says the system has achieved particularly good results with Bio Freshi's signature product, pumpkins, leading the company to expand its usage across its broader portfolio.

Omnia International Australia The most concentrated humates in the world Omnia’s range includes: t , IVNBUF K-humate 26% (Liquid) K-humate S100 (Dry) - 100% soluble t 0NOJ#POE Biostimulant coatings that increase NPK and Urea effciency t , 'VMWBUF Organic chelating agent t 4FBXFFE 1VSB,FMQ , ,FMQ Pure bull kelp seaweed concentrates t 5SBDF &MFNFOU 3BOHF Organically chelated/complexed t 'PMJBST For crop management t 0NOJ#JP Microbes

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Nutriad targets Indian aquaculture market Belgium headquartered NUTRIAD, a leader in species specific additive solutions for fish and shrimp, was present with a delegation at Aqua India 2018, a bi-annual event +61 3 5133 9118 info@omnia.net.au www.omnia.com.au

NEWS UPDATE

organized by the Indian Society of Aquaculture Professionals (SAP). This year's event, sponsored by NUTRIAD, was held in Chennai, attracted industry professionals from all over India, following a strong growth year where the country closed in on the global leadership position in shrimp production. NUTRIAD has been present in the Indian market for many years, building relationships with local producers and industry experts.

Aqua India started with a full day session on Key topics in Aquaculture Nutrition. This Nutrition session was attended by aquaculture nutritionists, feed formulators and technical service providers working in feed companies together with researchers and academia in aquaculture nutrition and feed technology. Topics presented included progress in aquaculture nutrition research and practice, ingredient knowledge and feed formulation, the use of feed additives including organic selenium, enzymes and amino acids, and the need for education in Aquaculture Nutrition.

Nutriad showed its commitment to the Indian Aquaculture Industry through a Sponsorship for the event and was represented with Mr. Allen Wu, Regional Manager Aquaculture, Asia Pacific, Business unit Director Aquaculture Dr. Peter Coutteau and Country manager Gnanamani Thangairulappan.

“Nutriad is committed to the development of innovative feed additives for aqua customers, that target the specific nutrition and health challenges producers face. We bring practical solutions to the market that 6

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build on years of close interaction with fish and shrimp producers around the world,” said Nutriad CEO Erik Visser.

“APAC in general and India in particular are part of our strategic focus to further build on our leading position in the feed additives market for aquaculture,” concluded Visser.

Nutriad provides feed additive solutions for animal nutrition and health to more than 1,200 customers in over 80 countries, through a network of sales offices and distributors.

These are supported by 4 application laboratories and 5 manufacturing facilities on 3 continents. Nutriad Corporate website: www.nutriad.com

The world elite of the Avocado and Mango industry at the Tropical Fruit Congress Preparations are fully underway for the first edition of the Tropical Fruit Congress, the only European summit on avocados and mangoes to be hosted at Macfrut, the international trade fair for the fruit and vegetable industry.

Three months before the event, more than 100 participants from all over the world have already registered, including the main producer countries (Chile, Mexico, California and Spain, the first in Europe) and leading importers (first of all, the Netherlands).

The unique nature of this two-day event - the first of its kind in Europe, to be held at the Rimini Expo Centre (10-11 May) - and its illustrious guest speakers make it one of the top events of an increasingly international Macfrut 2018.

In the last few years, the interest in exotic fruits has increased exponentially, to the

extent that exotic fruit consumption in Europe is growing at double-digit rates.

As far as avocados are concerned, for example, 505,369 tonnes were consumed in the 2016-2017 period, with an average growth of 26.5% compared to the previous season, with peaks in Belgium (+146%), Luxembourg (+113%) and Spain (+41%) (reprocessed data from WAO).

In this general scenario, Italy could very well play a key role.

In particular Sicily, the region where the avocado and mango market has found its niche and where there is still a great potential for growth as well as opportunities for the entire agricultural supply chain.

Going back to the Summit, all Congress participants will be provided with a Yearbook complete with data on mango and avocado production and consumption, with a special section dedicated to the key players in the supply chain.

GCC's Leading Chicken Brand Factory awarded Best Food Establishment in 2017 OneFoods factory, the processor of the region's leading chicken brand “Sadia”, has recently been awarded the “Best Food Establishment Award 2017” for the second time, by the Food Control Division of the Abu Dhabi Food Control Authority (ADFCA). The award ceremony took place at the 8th edition of the SIAL Exhibition at the Abu Dhabi National Exhibition Center in December 2017.

The award was received as a part of the Weqaya Food Specification Awards in which The Abu Dhabi Food Control Authority (ADFCA), the Department of Health and the MARCH APRIL 2018

NEWS UPDATE

Abu Dhabi Quality and Conformity Council recognized institutions, companies and outlets that contribute to a healthier society.

The factory was selected as one of the Best Food Establishments in 2017 based on on-going inspections conducted by the Abu Dhabi Food Control Authority (ADFCA) which took place throughout the year. The factory was evaluated on the level of quality and safety of the food processing systems and overall performance.

Commenting on the award, Giovani Pelliza, General Manager of the factory, said: “We are proud to receive this prestigious award for the second time. It is a true testament to our commitment to high standards of quality in

MARCH APRIL 2018

food safety and production which we keep at the forefront of our efforts and prioritize at all times. We appreciate ADFCA in their efforts of benchmarking and maintaining a high standard of food quality across the United Arab Emirates.�

The state-of-the-art facility in KIZAD (Khalifa Industrial Zone Abu Dhabi) uses advanced technology to process Sadia's different range of products including its burger lines, nuggets lines, franks lines and marinated breast lines, in addition to other brands such as Hilal burger lines and nuggets lines, confidence franks lines and Perdix franks lines. With an annual production capacity of approximately 71,000 tons, the factory exports to twelve countries.

Al Rawabi's Contribution to the 'Year of Giving' The year 2017 was declared as the 'Year of Giving' by the UAE's President His Highness Sheikh Khalifa Bin Zayed Al Nahyan to reinforce 'giving' as a value that was also cherished and personified in the UAE's Founding Father Sheikh Zayed.

The goal of 'Year of Giving' has been to make a difference in the lives of those we care for and in ourselves.

Since its inception in 1989, Al Rawabi has been committed to serving the community through its robust CSR activities which it has carried forward with renewed vigour over the year of 2017. Al Rawabi, being a true Emirati brand has imbibed the values of the 2017 initiative of the 'Year Of Giving' to further contribute

GULF AGRICULTURE

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NEWS UPDATE

to the greater good of society and its people.

“Al Rawabi has always remained Emirati at its core virtuous and principled. We strongly support the country's vision to consolidate humanitarian work and contribute in establishing UAE as the most philanthropic country in the world. We have therefore constantly worked towards giving back to the community - be it in the form of recycling all the water that is used at the farm or by extending our support to different institution through initiatives and programs that benefit them at large. We will continue our commitment to support the vision and mission of this great nation in the coming years as well”, said Dr. Ahmed El Tigani, Chief

Executive Office of Al Rawabi Dairy Company. One of the key pillars of this initiative is 'to serve the nation' along with charity and volunteering - Al Rawabi has assimilated this virtue to continue to serve the nation's needs putting the people in the forefront.

Towards this endeavour, the company undertook a host of CSR initiatives in 2017 in line with the country's vision of 'Year of Giving'.

Colombia launches its new international campaign at Fruit Logistica to boost agricultural exports On February 9th, 2018, Juliana Villegas, Vice President of Exports for ProColombia, presented the campaign “Colombian Foods, as exciting

as its origin” at the Fruit Logistica fair in Berlin, an ambitious strategy that seeks to promote development of the Colombian countryside. “In this peacebuilding period, the agroindustry sector is called to be one of the country's great economic pillars. Colombia, the most biodiverse country in the world per square kilometre, with a climate that allows crops 365 days a year, rich soil for sowing and large areas of countryside, wants to give an international boost to the sector that already represents 50% of the country's non-energy mining exports”, explained Villegas during her speech on a panel formally opened by the Ambassador of Colombia in Germany, Maria Elvira Pombo.

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The Ambassador for her part stressed “the great variety, competitiveness and sustainability of Colombia's produce, capable of satisfying the international buyer with respect for the environment”.

ProColombia set up an eyecatching stand for the delegation of 15 companies that will participate as exhibitors in the fair: Frutireyes, Huertos Verdes, Avocate, Native Produce, Pacific Fruits, Hass Colombia, Bengala Agrícola, DML Sugar, Aprocol, Tropic Kit, Andes Export, CI Dorado, Caribbean, La Corsaria S.A.S and C.I. UNIBAN S.A., which are promoting products such as granadilla, lulo, feijoa, Tahiti lemon, cape gooseberries, gulupa and avocado.

Luis Felipe Bocanegra, executive director of Aprocol, considers participation at the Berlin fair to be very important: “Going out into the world has a direct impact on quality of life. It provides a real, strong and effective project that allows us to secure the future for the next generations”. For Francina Hernández, representative of La Corsaria, it is also vital to attend the fair with ProColombia: “This is the fourth year we've come and I think this is the way to do it, accompanied by ProColombia, which has always been very good. Our herbs are of a superb quality compared to competitors in Europe: we have more flavour, more colour, more aroma”.

Fresh Colombian fruit already reaches 44 countries, the top 5 being the Netherlands, the United Kingdom, Spain, Germany and the United States.

The main exports in this segment include Tahiti lemon, 10

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which increased sales from January-November 2017 with respect to the same period in 2016 by 70%, as well as avocado by 45% and cape gooseberries by 20%.

The Colombian countryside is one of the main beneficiaries of the trade agreement with the European Union. Colombian exports of agricultural products registered an annual growth of 5.5% between 2006 and 2016.

In 2006, Colombia exported US$ 930.7 million (1.3 million tonnes) of agricultural products, while in 2016 it exported US$ 1.593 billion, equivalent to 1.8 million tonnes. Furthermore, thanks to FTA, Colombia's agricultural export businesses almost doubled in number, from around 140 companies in 2006 to 230 in 2016.

Optical sorting helps boost Chile's seed economy Bühler's SORTEX® optical sorting technology is enabling Monsanto to improve quality, reduce operational time and decrease the amount of valuable seeds discarded of the 350,000kg that it cleans annually. The world's leading vegetable seed producer has installed a SORTEX A MultiVision™ sorter in its Viluco plant in Chile - at the heart of the country's central valley seed producing region where it exports 70 percent of this low volume, high value product.

The Viluco plant, one of six Monsanto seed facilities around the world, and the largest in South America, handles more than 500 seed varieties from 19 vegetable species. As well as seed cleaning and treatment, the plant carries out germination testing and variety purity tests also known as Purity Grow Out,

before packaging and distributing its high-quality seeds to more than 20 countries on five continents. This accounts for a large proportion of Chile's US$150m seed exports per year and as such plays a vital role in the country's economy.

Monsanto took delivery of the SORTEX optical sorter earlier this year and is already reaping the rewards of using sophisticated technology.

Ensuring high quality seeds was one of the company's main objectives and because of the accuracy of the advanced Bühler inspection system, it has been able to eliminate weeds and unwanted seeds - even those with the subtlest colour defects - that could not be removed with competitor equipment. Indeed, according to the company, all contaminants including brassica campestris, which was previously impossible to eliminate from brassica crops - can now be removed, enabling Monsanto to improve the purity of its seeds.

Minimising the loss of 'good' seeds was another priority for Monsanto when selecting an optical sorting supplier. With the previous technology good seed rejection rates were as high as five percent but thanks to the precision of Bühler's high speed ejection technology, it has dropped to one percent - a significant decrease when taking into account that some seeds are worth hundreds of dollars per pound.

Decreasing operational time was a further requirement for Monsanto when investing in Bühler's sorting equipment.

Previously seeds would be passed through the sorter numerous times before they met specifications - for example, a MARCH APRIL 2018

NEWS UPDATE

carrot seed - the most difficult to clean - would require six to seven passes. Now, with the precision of the SORTEX A MultiVision™, the process takes two to three passes.

YieldOn, the new biostimulant by Valagro that increases the productivity of row crops, reaches the French market A roadshow with a customised truck has been organised in the West of France during the first 2 weeks of March 2018 to show YieldOn and its benefits to farmers and distributors.

Valagro, a leading company in the production and marketing of biostimulants and specialty nutrients, launches YieldOn in the French market. In order to

show its innovative biostimulants specifically designed for row crop nutrition to the French distributors and farmers, the Valagro France team will lead a roadshow with a customised truck in the West of France during the first two weeks of March 2018. AgraliaMaisadour, Soufflet Atlantique, Saboc-Capl and AgriSoleilScael - among the most important of Valagro's French distributors - are key partners in this 2018 YieldOn Tour.

YieldOn represents Valagro's specific response to the need to increase the productivity of row crops such as corn, soybean, wheat, rice, rapeseed, sunflower and cotton sustainably. YieldOn is in fact able to improve the

transportation of sugars and other nutrients, stimulate cell division, increase synthesis and, in the case of crops such as soybean, transportation of lipids. These are the functions of YieldOn that make it possible to obtain significant increases in yield, for example, in the weight of the seeds and in the amount of oil present in them.

These functions are ensured by the formulation of the new biostimulant based on anew combination of plant extracts never used before, from Fucaceae(seaweeds), Chenopodiaceae, Poaceae, created through the exclusive technological GeaPower platform, based on a combination of avant-garde

EFFICIENT POWER FOR PROFITABLE FARMING. THE PUMA SERIES.

The Puma tractor series is all about efficiency. With six models, ranging from 142 to 224 hp, Puma tractors provide the right amount of power for primary tillage, cultivation, planting and transport. Whether it’s spring or autumn work or pulling trailers, the Puma tractors’ outstanding power-to-weight ratio

will deliver the precise output you need for top efficiency and fuel savings.

The Puma range also features the revolutionary Continuously Variable Transmission. It is optionally available on the Puma 180 CVT, and as standard on the flagship Puma 225 CVT.

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MARCH APRIL 2018

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NEWS UPDATE

research methodologies. In particular, in the field of genomics, especially in relation to the study of crops such as soy and corn, we applied the Next Generation Sequencing technique. This technique, together with phenomics and rigorous field testing procedures carried out internationally with some of the world's best experimental centres, forms the basis of YieldOn's innovation and effectiveness.

Jean-Francois Ducret, Country manager, Valagro France: “YieldOn is an innovative solution for improving the productivity of row crops in a sustainable way.

This sounds important for cereals as half of the grain volumes produced in France are going to export where international competition is tough. Also return on investment of YieldOn on crops as corn, oil seed rape and soybean is very interesting in our intensive cropping conditions compared with nutritional solutions already on the market.

In summary, YieldOn is a solution able to guarantee a high added value for the crops, which means a higher return on investment for farmers, obtained respecting the environment.”

AgriCord and FAO join forces to enhance support to farmers' organizations FAO and AgriCord, a global alliance of agri-agencies mandated by farmers' organizations, are joining efforts to facilitate the engagement of family and smallholder farmers in decision making and policy dialogue, increase their institutional and organizational capacities and improve their access to markets and finance.

Doing so will unleash their 12

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potential in improving livelihoods and combatting climate change, FAO and AgriCord said.

Building on years of successful partnership, AgriCord and FAO signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to intensify joint efforts aimed at building the capacities of farmer's organizations to increase their vital role in reducing rural poverty.

The new agreement signed

by Daniel Gustafson, FAO Deputy Director-General, and Jean-François Isambert, President of AgriCord, lays out terms and conditions for joint projects over a five-year period.

The agreement focuses on supporting rural and producers' organizations in providing access to markets and finance for family and smallholder farmers and developing relevant technical capacities to adapt to climate change.

This will be realized through farmer-to-farmer learning and knowledge exchanges as well as South-South Cooperation, enabling the parties to expand the geographical focus of their collaboration.

"At FAO we place a high value on our partnerships with farmers' organizations who are central to the implementation of the Sustainable Development Goals," said Gustafson. "We are pleased to renew and expand the catalytic relationship with AgriCord which will link its many agri-agency partners to the work of FAO programmes.

It will help rural and producer organizations improve their businesses, increase gender equality, access markets and value chains, engage in policy advocacy, sustainably manage farms and forests and improve

information sharing, in the face of climate change and the many other pressures faced by farmers around the globe."

Chilean cherry exports hit record volume at over 150,000 tonnes The Chilean cherry sector has reached a milestone as an industry - overtaking the historic cherry export limit of 20 million cartons - by shipping more than 30 million cartons during the current 2017-18 season; a figure that is expected to keep rising as exports continue.

“Until last week of December 2017, we had reached more than 27 million cartons exported, but with the shipment that went out at the weekend, the industry has now overtaken 30 million cartons, the equivalent of 150,000 tonnes of cherries,” announced Cristian Tagle, President of the Cherry Committee of the Chilean Fruit Exporters Association (ASOEX).

According to Tagle, the volume reached to date has now surpassed the record 2014-15 campaign, when Chile exported over 21.7 million cartons or 103,081 tonnes of cherries.

Tagle noted that the record exports have only been possible thanks to growers receiving favourable climatic conditions, particularly at the start of the season. However, he added that the achievement was also the result of hard work by producers and exporters, which had led to a greater planted area and an emphasis on better-tasting, more productive varieties, as well as the implementation of technologies that have enabled improved management and care of orchards.

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NEWS UPDATE

sh FR to ipp EE U in A g E

ASOEX President Ronald Bown commented: “As we reach the record volume that we forecast, we have planned an important and intensive promotional campaign. The good news is we are ready and investing to boost consumption of these high volumes that are now a reality, particularly through promotional actions in China, which is the principle market for Chilean cherries.”

Bown said the promotional campaign would feature a US$5 million public-private investment from ASOEX Cherry Committee members and official export promotional body ProChile with a focus on actions in China.

The China promotional

campaign will feature a mix of activities directed at the end consumer, including point-of-sale product tastings, promotions on E-commerce sites, and campaigns on China's principal social media networks, WeChat and Weibo.

As well as this, advertising is being placed in Metro stations, residential lifts, mobile phone applications, and wholesale markets, among other avenues.

Of the 150,000 tonnes of Chilean cherries exported to date, some 89.1% was shipped to Asia, with China accounting for 94% of this total. In terms of other export destinations, the US received 4.8% of the total volume, followed by Europe

(2.4%), Canada (0.4%) and the Middle East (0.1%).

Finland, Romania and the UK, with plans for global rollout over the coming months.

Biobest Group has been able to improve and renew its website to make it more customer focused Rob Matheusen, the manager of the Damsigt facility of Gebroeders Valstar, completed the survey and was the lucky winner of an iPad, recently presented to him by Biobest advisor, Stefan Bohté.

We asked Rob about his relationship with Biobest and the importance of a good website.

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GULF AGRICULTURE

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NEWS UPDATE

Gebroeders Valstar has two 5ha facilities - the main site in Maasland plus the Damsigt facility, located in Roosendaal.

“We are the largest producer of Calathea in Europe and Biobest supplies us with our biological control agents,” explains Rob. “A few years ago we had a spider mite problem. Biobest recommended using the predatory mite Phytoseiulus in the cuttings department. It worked very well and since then we had relied on Biobest.”

Biological pest control is becoming increasingly important for Gebroeders Valstar, explains Rob. “We have fewer chemical agents at our disposal, plus there are additional restrictions imposed by the trade branch supplying large retailers. We are therefore increasingly looking for natural solutions for spider mite, thrips and mealybug.

“Stefan Bohté calls in every two weeks to work with our production team. It was his recommendation to use the food supplement NutrimiteTM, which has helped the predatory mite A. swirskii become more effective. As a result we have been able to retain the species Calathea zebrina, which is highly commercially successful.”

In order to optimise control of pest outbreaks, when completing our survey Rob stressed the importance of being able to quickly find practical information about pests and biological control agents. “I want to be able to find immediate answers. For example, to answer questions about the side effects of different chemical agents, the amount of useful biological 14

GULF AGRICULTURE

control agents that I need to use per m2 or how pests develop - that is what I want the website to deliver.”

FAO and OECD call for responsible investment in agriculture The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) and the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) launched a pilot project in Paris to kickstart the practical application of the OECD-FAO Guidance for Responsible Agricultural Supply Chains with 30 leading enterprises.

The project aims to improve the implementation of the Guidance and internationallyagreed standards on responsible production, sourcing and supply chain management in the agricultural sector.

Enterprises involved in the agricultural sector are critical for the fulfilment of the Sustainable Development Goals - playing a key role in generating much-needed investment, decent employment, developing productivity and supply chains that benefit producers and consumers. At the same time, business activities in this sector can undermine this potential when their operations or supply chains negatively impact workers, human rights, the environment, food security/nutrition, and tenure rights.

Brazilian food & beverage companies set to sign deals worth USD 1.4 billion in 2018 The successful participation of at least 100 Brazilian food and beverage companies in the recently concluded Gulfood

expo in Dubai is set to generate business worth USD 1.44 billion in 2018, recording a 25 per cent hike from the USD 1.1 billion in deals that stemmed from the 2017 edition of the expo. The overwhelming response enjoyed by Brazilian businesses at the event once again underscores the steady and continuous progress of trade relations between Brazil and the Arab World.

The Arab-Brazilian Chamber of Commerce (ABCC) pavilion at the expo attracted many visitors, including key stakeholders and several business and collaboration prospects, reaffirming the popularity and demand for Brazilian goods in the region.

Rubens Hannun, President of the Arab-Brazilian Chamber of Commerce, said: “Our participation at this year's edition of Gulfood has been extremely fruitful and we are confident that the new deals and consolidated partnerships will translate into significant business revenue in the coming months. The region represents one of our most important markets and hence the trade show is of great significance to us.”

Food prices down in December but up for the whole year Global food prices declined in December, led by sharp decreases for vegetable oils and dairy products, according to the latest FAO Food Price Index issued recently.

The index, a measure of the monthly change in international prices of a basket of food commodities, stood at 169.8 points in December 2017, down 3.3 percent from November.

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NEWS UPDATE the FAO Food Price Index averaged 174.6 points in 2017, up 8.2 percent from 2016 and reaching the highest annual average since 2014.

The FAO Dairy Price Index declined 9.7 percent in December, with high export supplies and subdued demand weighing on the international prices of skim and whole milk powders as well as cheese and butter. Still, the subindex was 31.5 percent higher over the whole of 2017 than the previous year.

The FAO Vegetable Oil Price Index declined by 5.6 percent from November, as palm oil prices tumbled amid swelling stocks in Malaysia and Indonesia. That in turn pressured down soy oil quotations. Over 2017, the subindex ran 3 percent higher than the prior year.

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GULF AGRICULTURE

The FAO Sugar Price Index also declined, marking a 4.1 percent drop from November due to seasonal factors and expectations of a large surplus in the year ahead. Sugar prices were 11.2 percent lower, on average, in 2017 than in 2016, due largely to a bumper harvest in Brazil, the world's leading producer.

The FAO Cereal Price Index remained broadly stable for the third consecutive month, with international wheat prices weakening while those of maize and rice firming up. The Index was 3.2 percent higher over 2017 than in 2016, while still 37 percent below its 2011 peak.

The FAO Meat Price Index slipped slightly in December, with strong supply pressuring international prices for bovine meat down. For the year, the subindex registered a 9 percent increase from its 2016 level.

Dowdupont announces brand names for the three independent companies it intends to create DowDuPont™ (NYSE:DWDP) announced the corporate brand names that each of its divisions plans to assume once they are separated as independent companies as intended. While certain product names will change at separation, many products within each intended company will continue be sold under their current, widely known brand names.

Ed Breen, chief executive officer of DowDuPont, said, “Our selection of these company names is a major milestone in the process of creating three, strong independent companies, and each name reflects the unique strengths and value proposition of the company it will

MARCH APRIL 2018

NEWS UPDATE represent. As we move forward, a critical part of our work will be to build and strengthen the global corporate brands that express the commitment we are making to our customers, employees, investors, and all of our stakeholders, to grow value through innovation.”

The intended Agriculture company, headquartered in Wilmington, Delaware, will assume the name Corteva Agriscience (pronounced: kohr`teh-vah), which is based on a combination of words meaning “heart” and “nature.”

James C. Collins, Jr., chief operating officer, Agriculture Division of DowDuPont, said, “In Corteva Agriscience™, we bring together three businesses with deep connections and dedication to generations of farmers. Our new name reflects our commitment to enhancing their productivity as well as the health and well-being of the consumers they serve. Our name reflects our purpose: enriching the lives of those who produce and those who consume, ensuring progress for generations to come. With the most balanced portfolio of products in the industry, nearly a century of agronomic expertise, and an unparalleled innovation engine, we are creating a new agriculture company that will work together with the entire food ecosystem to produce a secure supply of healthy food sustainably and efficiently.”

With more than $14 billion in 2017 pro forma revenue and $2.6 billion in 2017 pro forma operating EBITDA, the Agriculture Division has the most comprehensive and balanced seed and crop protection portfolio in the world and a strong pipeline of new products that will enable it to MARCH APRIL 2018

continue to provide substantial value to farmers now and over the long term.

While Corteva Agriscience™ will be the corporate brand name upon the separation of the division from DowDuPont, the company will continue to offer products under a number of the most recognized and premium brands in agriculture: Pioneer®, Mycogen®, the newly launched Brevant™ Seeds, and its awardwinning Crop Protection products, such as Aproach® Prima fungicide and Quelex™ herbicide with Arylex™ active, as well as others it will introduce as it brings new products to market.

TOMRA's user interface TOMRA ACT has been named a silver winner in the 2018 International FoodTec Award, organised by the DLG (German Agricultural Society) TOMRA ACT is designed to make sorting adjustments simple and predictable for the user or operator, enabling optimised control. This is achieved by changing the way the defect and product features are setup. Each user can define their own sorting criteria and apply customised naming conventions based on these criteria.

The software application is available on all the leading manufacturers' new food sorting machines, featuring an intuitive main screen, allowing operators to see critical sorting information and real-time processing data at a glance. Clear information enables improved monitoring, and fast adjustments are possible at any time, so the operator is always in control and is ideally placed to simply and easily optimize the sort.

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NEWS UPDATE

Asia Agri-Tech Expo & Forum to introduce total solutions for extreme weather on July 26-28 According to FAO, 26% of crop losses resulted from extreme weather such as windstorms, floods and droughts happened in developing countries. Not only farmers suffered severely, but also people encountered instability of food supply. The solution to overcome the climate change has become a crucial subject worldwide and climate-smart agriculture combining with big data, IoT technology and auto monitoring systems for indoor farming and plant factories make upcoming 2018 Asia Agri-Tech Expo & Forum worth attending.

To promote Agriculture 4.0 policy and Taiwan's intelligent agriculture products and services, UBM Asia Taiwan Branch and Council of Agriculture (COA) collectively launch 2018 Asia Agri-Tech Expo & Forum at Taipei World Trade Center on July 26-28. With the theme “Innovative, Eco-friendly, Sustainable,” the trade show positions itself as a one-stop B2B international trading platform and aims to showcase Taiwan's competitiveness in the smart agriculture industry.

UBM expects this exhibition to help farmers improve software and hardware and to provide a better solution for extreme weather, industry upgrade, food crisis, and agrarian sustainability.

The great crop losses caused by extremely cold weather in 2016 and 2017 drew wide attention in the world.

To stabilize farming environment and decrease the impact of severe weather, vendors have been focusing on the development of environmental control systems, water-saving irrigation equipment, agricultural monitoring facilities and pest identification tools for greenhouses and plant factories.

The greenhouse constructor,

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Hua Wang Ltd., endeavours to change weather conditions in small spaces. It produces advanced greenhouses with steel structure, equipped with an indoor environmental control and automatic irrigation system, recovery system for waste heat, heaters that save 15% of energy, automatic shading nets and fans ventilation systems to help farmers increase productivity and achieve steady income.

In addition, the use of agricultural nutrients and organic fertilizers has become one of the strategies to mitigate the impact of extreme weather. Soil Conditioner of BIO, a new microbiological fertilizer introduced by Wellness Top Biotech, provides biological microorganisms a better reproducing circumstance to make soils more protective and crops more drought-and disease-resistant.

The 2nd edition of Asia Agri-Tech Expo & Forum is held concurrently with Livestock & Aquaculture Taiwan Expo & Forum at Taipei World Trade Center, Taiwan on July 26-28, 2018.

The grand 3-day exhibition contains a series of conferences and business match-making programmes. At present, the UBM Asia Taiwan Branch has received enquiries about indoor farming systems from Malaysia, Singapore and Vietnam.

UBM is now calling for manufacturers from around the world, including Southeast Asia, the Middle East, Europe and USA to participate in this one-and-only comprehensive B2B exhibition.

For more exhibition information and details, please refer to the official website http://www.agritechtaiwan.com or contact Ms. Sophia Lu (TEL: +886-2-2738-3898; Email: aat-tw@ubm.com).

of TOMRA's latest generation of food sorters, the TOMRA 5A and TOMRA 5B. The user interface can also be installed as an upgrade in certain existing models. This means that nonce an operator is trained to use TOMRA ACT, they can use any machine featuring the software.

“To be nominated and ultimately receive a silver award in such a prestigious competition is a fantastic endorsement of the quality of design that goes into TOMRA sorters and elevates the value of our products to customers,” says John McGloughlin, head of innovation, strategy and design at TOMRA Sorting Food.

“The development of TOMRA ACT involved many in-depth discussions with customers. A key insight from the discussions was that small adjustment errors can have major consequences in terms of yield and cost. To overcome this, we had to make TOMRA ACT simple, intuitive and straightforward.

“TOMRA ACT is focused on the customer, allowing them to easily control the quality and direction of product flows in their sorting process, with simple, intuitive touch gestures and actions on the screen.”

This user interface for TOMRA food sorters is a fundamentally different way for users and customers to interact with these machines. Food sorting machines contain very complex sensing, conveying and ejection technologies.

With TOMRA ACT, a system has been created that keeps the complicated sorting task as simple as possible. The complex adjustments are simplified by drag-and-drop operations on the sorter touch screen.

MARCH APRIL 2018

AGRA ME PREVIEW

REGIONS FIRST FREE CPD ACCREDITED ANIMAL HEALTH CONFERENCE

A

graME, one of the largest exhibitions in the Middle East highlighting products and services from different agricultural sectors, is taking place on 6-8 March at the Dubai World Trade Centre and will be hosting a three-day, free-to-attend Animal Health Conference which offers CPD accreditation to attending veterinarians. The CPD Certification Service operates across various industry sectors

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to complement the Continuing Professional Development policies of professional institutes and academic bodies.

Government representation for the conference comes from the Abu Dhabi Food Control Authority (ADFCA) and Dubai Municipality's (DM) Veterinary Services Section. Taking place on day two of the conference, Dr. Faisal Salem Hamdan Barakeh, Animal Production Specialist for ADFCA is to present a lecture on improving

the productivity of livestock in the Emirate of Abu Dhabi, and is expected to look in-depth at the challenges facing livestock development in the Emirate and what investment opportunities exist in the livestock sector and how to capitalise on them.

With Antimicrobial Resistance (AMR) being a major issue in human and animal health, the presentation

by Dubai Municipality Veterinary Services Section on Day two by Dr Louai MARCH APRIL 2018

AGRA ME PREVIEW

Abdelrahman Ahmed, Principal Veterinary Specialist, Dubai Municipality will focus on the DM's measures in place for combating the development of AMR in the animal sector in line with OIE and FAO protocols.

Speaking ahead of the conference, Eng. Hashim Mohammed Al Awadhi, Head of Veterinary Services Section, Dubai Municipality commented: “Our Veterinary Services Section is always committed to the encouragement of continuous veterinary education and creating a learning atmosphere for our local industry, as well as for Veterinary professionals. We look forward to being part of the efforts in making Dubai further as a hub for learning for veterinary professionals.”

Day one of the conference focuses on large animal health looking at equines and camels.

One of the key sessions of the day comes from Dr. Nishar Ahmad Wani, Scientific Director, Reproductive Biotechnology Centre who will be looking at the latest developments in assisted reproduction in camels.

“With such strides being made in the country around camel reproduction, it made sense to put a heavy focus on this for day one of our conference. The world's first successful artificially inseminated birth took place only a few weeks ago, with two more due to happen soon, so we feel the conference is happening at the perfect time to support it.” commented Samantha Bleasby, Exhibition Director, AgraME. Day three of the conference looks at herd treatment and MARCH APRIL 2018

management protocols, the role of natural supplements in animal health, gene editing techniques in animals and research in microbiology. Key speakers include Dr. S. Mathan Kumar, Senior Veterinary Surgeon, Directorate General of Veterinary Services, Royal Court Affairs, Oman; Dr. Soja Saghar Soman, Research Scientist, New York University Abu Dhabi; Dr. Ahmed I. Yagi, Associate Professor, Al Khawarizmi International College and Dr. Shuaib Khan, Research Scientist, Himalaya Global Research Centre.

“We are proud to be able to offer the region's first CPA accredited Animal Health conference free of charge.

With the expert knowledge of ADFCA and Dubai Municipality I believe we are in a good position to highlight some of the key themes surrounding the industry while giving veterinary professionals from across the Middle East access to high-level content and training opportunities.

Over the last 8 years VETME has brought together the veterinary industry in the Middle East.

Now under the umbrella of AgraME, the animal health section will provide more suppliers and learning opportunities than ever before,” added Bleasby.

With a more targeted focus on the Crop Farming, Animal Farming, Aquaculture and Animal Health sectors, AgraME 2018 will attract suppliers and buyers, both locally and internationally, looking to source the latest products and innovative solutions, as well as offer a content platform to discuss ways to tackle the ongoing struggle in regional food security.

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GFIA REVIEW

EXPLORING THE FUTURE OF FOOD SECURITY AND FINDING SOLUTIONS

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er Excellency Mariam Bint Mohammed Saeed Hareb Al Mehairi opened the first Food Security Innovations Think-Tank at the Global Forum for Innovations in Agriculture, held under the patronage of His Highness Sheikh Mansour Bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Presidential Affairs, Chairman of the Abu Dhabi Food Control Authority. The private sessions held between local and federal

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government agencies, private sector enterprises, farmer representatives, experts and specialist and representatives of the General Secretariat of the Executive Council addressed the challenges of the private sector and explored ways to improve food security policies, strategies and attract investment to support the food security system.

Organized by the Abu Dhabi Food Control Authority with support by the Food

Security Centre - Abu Dhabi, the innovation think-tank addressed: ways to strengthen the food security system by enabling strategic partnerships at the local and federal levels of the UAE; identify the requirements of the private sector and investors in the food and agriculture sector to overcome obstacles; and identify the requirements of complimentary roles between government agencies at both a local and federal level to MARCH APRIL 2018

GFIA REVIEW

support the food security system in the UAE. In a statement during the conference H.E Mariam Bint Mohammed Saeed Hareb Al Mehairi, Minister of State responsible for future food security said: “The Food Security Innovation Sessions are an ideal platform for joint action, aimed at putting the government and relevant sectors in a row to explore the future of food security and finding solutions to increase the contribution of the private sector in the food equation of the UAE. We cannot consider the issue of food security as an independent issue and separate from society, we must activate the role of all entities in MARCH APRIL 2018

addressing the challenges we face, taking into consideration that innovation is the key tool for improving food and agricultural production and essential for food security.�

In support of each sectors referenced during the thinktank the Global Forum for Agriculture announced the winners of its 2018 Innovation Awards presented by the Abu Dhabi Food Control Authority. Six companies were awarded as follows: Best innovation in crops production awarded to Elite Agro, UAE for their technique to use high elevation areas to manage crop growing for extremely difficult crop cultivation in the region; Best innovations in Aquaculture awarded to Fresh Corporation AG, Switzerland for their world's first large-scale urban sea fish farm without access to the sea; Best date production innovation awarded to Natural Alternatives from Palestine for their valorization of date palm waste to produce organic silage; Best Indoor Farming Innovation to Evergreen Farm Oy, from Finland for their innovative vertical farming technology to grow high-quality fruits, vegetable and flowers in a state-of-the-art environmentally controlled structure Direct Feed Vertical Hydroponics (DFVH) unit which produces the world's highest crop yield per square meter and per cubic meter; Best innovation by a start-up awarded to AgUnity, Australia for their agtech starts helping the smallest farmers in developing countries with a blockchain and smartphone solution; Best Innovation for

honey production awarded to Healthy Bees USA, for BeesVita Plus an all natural next generation nutritional system for honey bees; and Best innovation in animal production was awarded to Olmix, French based company for their natural algae-based solutions for nutrition, hygiene and health of plants, animals and Humans.

The Arab Beekeeping Association, as part of their first International Conference of Arab Beekeepers, also announced the first ever Arab Honey Awards presented by Abu Dhabi Quality and Conformity Council awarding: Gold prize in Liquid Honey to Ghazi Ali Al-Ghamdi, Saudi Arabia and Silver prize to Ali Khalfan Al-Shamsi, UAE and third prize to Abullah Shuib from Saudi Arabia.

In the honey comb section gold prize was awarded to Fahad Radi Al-Qanoon, Saudi Arabia and silver prize to Ali Al-Dhahani, UAE. Over 600 companies from over 100 countries presented their products and projects promoting sustainable food production to more than 15,000 visitors who attended the a trio of agtech events GFIA, International Conference of Arab Beekeeping Organization and the second VIV MEA 2018 Abu Dhabi over the two day event.

GFIA sponsored by the UAE Ministry of Presidential Affairs, and supported by National Feed and Flour Production and Marketing LLC, AgUnity, GODAN Global Open Data for Agriculture & Nutrition, Abu Dhabi Fund for Development, Madar Farms, Emirates Future and the Food Security CenterAbu Dhabi.

INNOVATION AWARDS FOR AGRICULTURE AND THE FIRST HONEY AWARDS IN THE UAE ARE ANNOUNCED ON THE FINAL DAY OF WORLD'S LARGEST SHOWCASE OF SUSTAINABLE AGRICULTURAL INNOVATION

GULF AGRICULTURE

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MENOPE REVIEW

THE MIDDLE EAST ORGANIC AND NATURAL PRODUCTS EXPO 2017

T

o start off with, the exhibition had several highlights. We had 175 exhibitors showcasing in 10 pavilions, from over 50 countries. The sectors where distributed as follows; 11% in the environment sector, 26% in the Living Sector, 32% in Beauty, 33% in Health and 52% in Food and Beverages.

David Riechert from Ekobryggeriet lab stated, “The show has been amazing - we have been very busy and didn't even have time to sit down. It has been very exciting and overwhelming.

We got many enquiries and had important meetings at the B2B lounge. Will be coming back next year for sure.”

On the visitors end, we had 5,680 B2B visitors from over 36 countries.. The top 10 countries of visitors include

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UAE, Saudi Arabia, India, Egypt, Lebanon, Kuwait, Bahrain, Oman, Morocco and Tunisia. Our visitors ranged from Managers and Directors to Founders and Entrepreneurs.

Across the region, VIP buyers were identified and offered hotel accommodation, local transportation and meeting assistance to participate in the show. The USD 100,000 program attracted top buyers from Saudi Arabia, Iraq, Syria, Africa and the Central Asia region. We also hosted 356 buyers and 158 VIP buyers.

“Our company sources and buys products for central Europe for major retailers such as Carrefour. The show has been great, with many innovative products. We found some interesting products such

as energy drinks, essential oils and smoothies,” said Petra Milatova, from First Food Production in Slovakia.

On the marketing front, the digital exhibition portal launched in 2017 was actively marketed to potential buyers in the Middle East four months prior to the show. On an average, each exhibitor received five+ inquiries through the portal. Exhibitors were offered 365 days of exposure through this platform.

In a first in the region through the O2O platform, the organizers combine offline and online resources to maximize benefits for the exhibitors. The platform also offers buyers the opportunity to identify their prospect suppliers.

“We are very happy with the show. We have already MARCH APRIL 2018

MENOPE REVIEW

signed a contract worth 500,000 metric tonne per year from a company in China and 200,000 metric tonnes per year from a company in India.

At least seven agreements in the exhibition were already signed during the show - and we had already got a prepayment from a Chinese company at the show. We have recommended this show to others back home,” said Sami Barakat - General Manager and Geo Art Organic.

“The exhibition has been absolutely fabulous and beyond our expectations. We have been to many exhibitions and the service level here was amazing. The O2O platform has been absolutely great in terms of information sharing and setting up meetings. We would love to come back MARCH APRIL 2018

RUNNING FOR 15 YEARS, THE MIDDLE EAST ORGANIC AND NATURAL PRODUCTS EXPO 2017 ENDED ON A POSITIVE NOTE. WE HAVE HAD OUR MOST SUCCESSFUL YEAR YET again,” said Sivalingam Srikandakumar from Sakti Agro International.

Some figures from our marketing campaign include: 1.5 million total traffic on organic 24/7, 500K+ total traffic on our website, more than 63,000 Facebook Fans,

21000 O2O users and 891 successful O2O meetings. We also attained a 94,000 total verified buyers database.

Finally, we conducted over 15 knowledge sessions in the Seminar Area by industry experts on topics ranging from how to set-up organic farms in the UAE to the Global policy toolkit on public support to organic agriculture.

“It's been really awesome, never expected to have such an amazing response. Better than other shows that we do in Asia. Enquiries from 10 different countries. Latin America, Asia, USA - very multicultural,” said Shubhika Jain from Ras Oil, India.

22% of exhibitors are already confirmed for exhibition in 2018, which is a testimony to the level of success of the show.

GULF AGRICULTURE

25

GULFOOD REVIEW

UAE'S F&B MARKET SHARE TO REACH $13.2 BILLION BY 2018

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is Highness Sheikh Hamdan bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Deputy Ruler of Dubai and UAE Minister of Finance, opened Gulfood 2018, the 23rd edition of the world's largest annual food and beverage trade show at Dubai World Trade Centre (DWTC).

Spread across one million square feet of exhibition space, Gulfood is the world's first major food and beverage trade event of the year and attracted over 90,000 food industry professionals and 120 exhibiting country pavilions.

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The show welcomes international heads of state, ministers, government officials and national trade associations.

Touring the mega show, which runs for five days at DWTC, Sheikh Hamdan reviewed the latest innovations and technologies that are redefining the food sector landscape as key sector players look to meet the evolving demand of a rising, younger, increasingly urbanised population.

Featuring more than 5,000 regional and international

exhibitors across eight segments, including Beverages; Dairy; Fats & Oils; Health, Wellness & FreeFrom; Pulses, Grains & Cereals; Meat & Poultry; Power Brands and World Food, eager to get their slice of a growing global food market, which is one of largest manufacturing sectors, contributing $77.5 trillion to the world economy in 2017 according to the Gulfood Industry Outlook Report, and is forecast to grow at a Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) of 2.9 per cent MARCH APRIL 2018

GULFOOD REVIEW

from 2017-2030. This is driven in part by rising populations in emerging markets within Asia Pacific and Middle East and North Africa (MENA) regions and a shift towards packaged and convenience foods. The UAE F&B market meanwhile, is forecast to reach $13.2 billion by 2018, according to a KPMG report.

“The F&B industry in the UAE and wider region is thriving, which provides a diverse range of business opportunities for local, regional and international companies alike,” said Trixie LohMirmand, Senior Vice President, Exhibitions & Events, DWTC. “Gulfood continues to serve as the industry benchmark and is the ideal platform for industry MARCH APRIL 2018

HIS HIGHNESS SHEIKH HAMDAN BIN RASHID AL MAKTOUM, DEPUTY RULER OF DUBAI AND UAE MINISTER OF FINANCE, OPENED GULFOOD 2018, THE 23RD EDITION OF THE WORLD'S LARGEST ANNUAL FOOD AND BEVERAGE TRADE SHOW AT DUBAI WORLD TRADE CENTRE (DWTC) professionals looking to network and explore new business avenues.”

New to this year's show is the Gulfood Discover Zone, where new-to-market products are showcased in an exclusive and interactive lounge. The

zone featured vertical segments of Dairy; Hot Beverages; Cold Beverages; Meat & Poultry; Health, Wellness & Free-from; Confectionary; Snacks and Condiments.

Gulfood also featured Halal World Food, the world's largest annual Halal food sourcing trade show; the annual Emirates Culinary Guild International Salon Culinaire, the world's largest single-entry chef competition; the World Coffee Events' 2018 Cezve/Ibrik Championship and the Gulfood Innovation Awards, which recognised best-in-class excellence and innovation across the region's F&B industry with a glittering awards ceremony at the Madinat Arena.

GULF AGRICULTURE

27

GROWING SOLUTIONS

LIGHT4FOOD REINFORCES THE PRIVA PARTNER NETWORK WITH INDOOR GROWING

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ight4Food and Priva have responded to the rapid increase in the number of indoor growing activities by entering into the Priva Partnership.

Light4Food, with its broad network and powerful group of customers in the seedbreeding and food production

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GULF AGRICULTURE

sectors, is a strong cooperation partner for Priva.

Rene van Haeff, Managing Director, Light4Food and Jaco de Vries, Horticulture Sales Manager, sealed the partnership when they signed the contract.

Priva's new Light4Food partner is focused exclusively

on indoor growing solutions in Europe and other parts of the world. The company offers a complete package of solutions from technical engineering, right through to the installation.

Light4Food also carries out plant research, and assists in the cultivation of crops in indoor growing facilities. The MARCH APRIL 2018

GROWING SOLUTIONS

company has completed numerous major projects in recent years that include mobile climate chambers for seed breeding, and indoor growing test facilities for vegetable growers.

Light4Food now has a group of customers that include pioneering market leaders in the seed breeding and food production sectors and, as a result, possess the knowledge and technology for seeds right through to the end product. Light4Food's combination of technology and plant research enables the company to provide optimum advice to its customers and assisting them in using the products most effectively.

Light4Food is an ideal partner for Priva in order to enhance both the national and international seed and vegetable market.

Priva develops and supplies products and services for sustainable, innovative climate control and process management in the horticultural and utility construction sectors. Priva has in-depth knowledge of both irrigation and lighting strategies in horticulture and the creation of an optimal indoor climate in a building with HVAC controls. The combination of knowledge of these diverse sectors is crucial and valuable for growing all kinds of crops in an indoor growing environment. In cooperation with its partners, Priva implements its hardware and software solutions in many growing environments, for example, nursery containers, city farms, sheds and in roof greenhouses.

When developing these solutions Priva not only MARCH APRIL 2018

reviews water, climate and cultivation issues, but also considers labor and management factors. The very powerful combination of

Priva's knowledge and Light4Food's knowledge and expertise will be of great value in elevating indoor growing projects to a higher level.

GULF AGRICULTURE

29

IRRIGATION

EXTREME RANGE WIRELESS EMITTER

T

he STREGA wireless Smart-Emitter has been designed to provide a seamless ultra-long range wireless capability to most common irrigation and sprinklers valves.

This wireless smart-emitter device connects directly to the DC latching solenoid of the valve while providing wireless connectivity up to 10+ km distance from the Control Room or the irrigation controller even through obstacles.

The STREGA wireless Smart-Emitter is provided within an IP68 enclosure with 6 wires (1 m length) to connect to the valve and digital inputs.

These wires are passing through a sealing gland to ensure complete waterproofing. Two extra Digital Inputs can be associated to the control of the

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valve for flow monitoring or any alarm status.

The vast majority of the irrigation valve suppliers offer DC latching solenoids as a retrofit for their AC valves for applications where the irrigation controller is powered by batteries. Such retrofit solenoid is usually low cost (Euro 10-15).

With its ultra-low-power consumption, the STREGA wireless Smart-Emitter operates on batteries during 5+ years* (calculation based on two irrigation periods/day) and through extreme long distances from the gateway/concentrator.

LoRaWAN technology provides an exceptional obstacles penetration even in urban or suburban areas. An external power source like a micro solar panel can also power the emitter for unlimited time operation.

The STREGA wireless Smart-Emitter permits to forget laying cables from the irrigation controller to the valve and offers a unique identification key combined with full encrypted wireless data for secure Open/Close control.

The cost of the STREGA wireless Smart-Emitter is far less expensive than the cost to dig and bury wires. It is more cost effective to replace buried wire systems with a wireless solution than to continuously repair wires that have been chewed by varmints or damaged by earth moving equipment.

The STREGA wireless Smart-Emitter is compatible with DC latching solenoid valves from Toro, Rainbird, Hunter, Bermad, Irritrol, Galcon, Buckner, KRain, Weathermatic, Signature, etc.

MARCH APRIL 2018

AGRICULTURE MACHINERY

GREEN HOUSE EDX - EDX M Disc harrow for mixing the soil Specialists for 40 years in innovative equipment for minimum tillage and conservative agriculture and for 10 years specialists also in seeding

ESQ CH

26011 Casalbuttano (Cremona) - ITALIA Via Giovanni Paolo II, II 12 Tel. +39 0374 362680 - Fax +39 0374 362280

Medium-heavy grubber

SEAC COMBI Combined equipment for the double layer working: deep tillage and surface crumbling

www.ma-ag.com - info@ma-ag.com MARCH APRIL 2018

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31

PLANTER BAGS

BECK GROUP'S SPECIALIST RANGE OF PLANTER BAGS TO MEET TODAY'S DEMAND FOR LARGE LANDSCAPE PROJECTS

B

eck Group's specialist range of planter bags, including TreePlanta and HedgePlanta, have been designed specifically for the commercial grower to meet today's demand for immediately-available stock

for large landscape projects.

There is a great competitive advantage in having containergrown stock instantly available, at any time, compared with field-grown stock which require laborious digging and root-balling, and is only available at certain times of the year. TreePlanta and HedgePlanta bags enable you to gain this advantage.

Produced from tough, woven UV-stabilized polypropylene, they are double-laminated for rigidity, enabling speedy potting. They have many advantages over plastic and other types of rigid containers: J Low, squat design for stability J Integrated handles for easy manual or fork-truck handling J Pre-drilled air and drainage holes in the sides and base to promote strong root growth J Fabric material precludes the damage to stock which often results from the abrasive hard edges of rigid containers during transportation

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J Supplied flat packed in bales

— much more compact to store, lighter to handle and easier to dispose of One of our UK customers quoted “We have used Tree Planta bags for many years and have found them to be useable and durable. The attractive, flexible and durable bag is MARCH APRIL 2018

PLANTER BAGS

beneficial for the handling of our valuable product right from bedding down until final delivery to the customer. Our customers appreciate the ease of handling and minimal packaging waste volume. Beck provides us with a reliable, economic and dependable service and is responsive to our specific requests. We are MARCH APRIL 2018

happy to highly recommend TreePlanta bags.�

Free delivery to the UAE Beck Group are a leading planter bag supplier within the UK, however we also distribute our bags worldwide. Our competitive prices and FREE DELIVERY to the UAE has enabled us to

supply our bags to well known growers within the country.

To discuss your requirements further, including the possibility of bespoke sizes, colours and branding, please contact us on +44 1432 263598 or email info@beckgroup.net GULF AGRICULTURE

33

FERTILISERS

COMMITTED TO ZIMBABWE’S FARMING SECTOR

Z

imbabwe's signature agricultural industry is an energised one to be a part of in 2018, with local agricultural companies like Ferts, Seed & Grain (FSG) committed to the creation of a thriving farming sector.

Established in 2010 as a smallscale importer of finished fertilizers, FSG has blossomed in it's seven-year lifetime. Today

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FSG stands as a leading manufacturer of fertiliser in Zimbabwe, committed to supplying farmers large and small with high-quality products.

FSG's success is, in part, thanks to the intervention of the Zimbabwean government who have shown strong commitment to making the country selfsustainable in food production. A few years ago the importation of finished products was disallowed, with all blends required to be manufactured locally. At this time FSG took the opportunity to

grow it's production facilities.

From it's early days of importing finished blends, FSG went on to purchase a large property, formerly a cotton factory, in Bindura. In 2014 they went on to erect a small bulk blending plant, enabling the company to blend its own fertilizers. The blending plant has grown over time, and with the addition of a continuous blender and current installation of a granulator the factory churns out 1,000 tons of fertiliser a day.

MARCH APRIL 2018

FERTILISERS FSG is producer of the Meridian Group's flagship fertiliser brand Superfert Fertilizer, which is produced and sold across the region through plants in Malawi, Mozambique and of course Zimbabwe. Superfert supply straight fertilizers, bulk blends and specialised prescription blends to the entire Zimbabwean market including sugar cane production for sugar and ethanol, large and small-scale tobacco farmers, cotton production, maize, wheat and soya farmers and Government schemes - to name a few. Demand for Superfert Fertilizer in Zimbabwe has increased at an impressive rate in both it's retail and commercial arms - with the former seeing a 90% YoY increase in tobacco sales specifically.

MARCH APRIL 2018

With the support and resources of the Meridian Group to call upon, FSG has been comfortably able to meet the surge in volume demand for the raw materials required to manufacture its fertilisers and capture market share.

Importantly, it was able to do so cost-effectively. This isn't to say that FSG has rested on its laurels; the company has invested in the facilities to hold up to 20,000 metric tons of stock, and implemented processes so it can be placed on the ground where it is needed ahead of demand.

Then, there are the advantages that come with operating the most modern fertiliser production facility in Zimbabwe, which is very cost efficient as far as operational costs are

concerned, and which therefore gives FSG a competitive advantage on the price they can offer to customers.

Both FSG and the Zimbabwean farming industry at large look set for great things to come in 2018.

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35

TRACTORS

CASE IH RECEIVES GOOD DESIGN® AWARD: THE AUTONOMOUS CONCEPT TRACTOR RECOGNIZED FOR DESIGN EXCELLENCE

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T

he Chicago Athenaeum Museum of Architecture and Design and Metropolitan Arts Press Ltd. has announced the Case IH Autonomous Concept Tractor as one of the winners of this year's prestigious Good Design Award. The Museum's annual GOOD DESIGN® Awards recognize the most innovative and cutting-edge industrial, product, and graphic designs produced around the world.

Case IH first unveiled the world's first high horsepower, cabless autonomous concept tractor at the Farm Progress Show in 2016, marking a revolutionary step forward in

tractor design. The tractor was designed by CNH Industrial's in-house Industrial Design Center and based on the current Case IH Magnum row crop tractor. The concept's design was focused on both form and function, reimagining the tractor for a future autonomous era by eliminating the traditional operator cab.

“This award marks a satisfying conclusion to the celebration of our 175th anniversary,” says Andreas Klauser, Case IH Brand President. “The autonomous concept tractor is perhaps the best illustration of how we are living up to the

MARCH APRIL 2018

TRACTORS

anniversary's tagline Celebrating the Past by Looking Toward the Future.”

After the reveal at the Farm Progress Show in August of 2016, the tractor was shown at trade fairs in France, Brazil, Argentina, and Australia.

“Over the past year, we have used this concept tractor as a way to kick off a dialog with our customers as to what the future of farming will look like in five or ten years' time,” explains Klauser.

“From talking to customers in different countries, we see that for the near term, they want to have the flexibility of still having a cab on the tractor.

MARCH APRIL 2018

This is the direction we are taking because we want our customers to feel comfortable as they begin to delegate more tasks to the machines themselves,” says Klauser.

“We have already begun to see some of the applications of this concept study being applied in our current lineup such as AccuTurnTM and there are more introductions on the horizon.” AccuTurn takes the guesswork out of turning on headlands with automated headland-turning technology powered by software logic from the autonomous concept tractor.

This next-generation Advanced Farming Systems (AFS)

autoguidance technology provides hands-free, automatic and repeatable turns for increased productivity, improved accuracy and reduced operator fatigue.

“We will see more AFS product content on our offering to come in 2018,” says Klauser.

“We are excited to be starting a pilot program with an evolved concept that incorporates the feedback from customers' reactions to the concept as well as additional testing. We are working with a key customer with intensive tilling operations to thoroughly test the implementation of this technology.”

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37

BIOSECURITY MANAGEMENT

F

By Dr. Hansel Geo Thomas, BVSc & AH, MS (Edin.)

38

ood security and stability has become one of the major concerns for countries all over the world, especially in the recent era of rising global tensions. This in turn has furthered the emergence of many livestock farms to sustain the local demand for dairy and meat products in the market.

However, not all livestock farms are totally successful in generating the necessary yield and maintaining good herd health.

Outbreaks of diseases are common on livestock farms and they negatively impact the economic viability of the project, but also adversely affect the welfare and health of animals. Hence, effective biosecurity measures are of utmost importance in maintaining herd health and generating revenues.

Biosecurity measures can be defined as management practices that prevent spread of pathogens (disease-causing organisms) from infected animal to susceptible animals, thereby also aiding in the prevention of introducing

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pathogens into a herd, region or country.

In the recent years, the scientific discipline of Biosecurity has become of major importance in the veterinary sector, particularly due to the outbreak of diseases as well as intentional introduction of disease-causing pathogens in to sovereign territories, which in other words, is also called Bioterrorism.

Biosecurity management in any farm can be established at 2 levels: 1. External Biosecurity: These are protocols established to prevent introduction of pathogens into the farm from external sources like introduction of new animals, entry of outside vehicles, personnel into the farm etc.

2. Internal Biosecurity: These are protocols established to promote effective control of pathogens that are already present in the farm.

An effective biosecurity program identifies risks and

addresses those risks through effective management to minimize potential threats to animal health and welfare.

Some Basic Biosecurity Measures that can be followed in any farm are as follows: 1. Maintenance of a closed herd: A closed herd is one in which there is no introduction of new animals from outside the farm. As far as possible, maintaining a closed herd is one of the best ways to prevent outbreak of diseases.

Disease causing microorganisms enter herds through addition of animals from external sources. Closed herds effectively mitigates the possibility of pathogen introduction.

2. Quarantine, Isolation and Testing of new animals: When a closed herd is not possible, strict protocols must be ensured with purpose built quarantine or isolation facilities, away from the main farm to isolate, monitor and test new animals for diseases.

Necessary vaccinations and anti-microbial treatments MARCH APRIL 2018

ANIMAL HEALTH

T IN LIVESTOCK FARMING must also be conducted during this period.

3. Restriction of farm personnel and streamlining of work flow: Pathogens can be introduced and transmitted via clothing, inanimate objects and vehicles. Hence, It is of absolute importance to monitor personal hygiene of farm personnel as well as restrict their movements between various regions of the farm. It is also equally important to establish a workflow pattern in such a way that pathogens are not transmitted via farm personnel to healthy animals on the farm.

4. Periodic analysis of feed and water supply: Feed and water contamination are one of the other major threats to farm biosecurity. Therefore water quality and contamination of feed must be monitored regularly.

5. Regular Veterinary Monitoring and Treatments: The health status of every herd must be regularly monitored and treated by MARCH APRIL 2018

qualified veterinarians.

Veterinarians play a major role in both external and internal biosecurity levels, thereby arresting the immediate spread of infections. Regular examinations of farm animals will help in early detection and preventing spread of diseases, thereby ultimately promoting animal health and generating increased farm revenues.

6. Carcass Disposal: Incineration, burying, composting and rendering are some of the options for carcass disposal. Every farm must employ a disposal method that is inline with the biosecurity measures that are undertaken. For example: In rendering, service vehicles are to collect carcasses only at a designated point on the periphery of the farm without entering the farm.

7. Cleaning and Disinfection: Cleaning animal housing facilities with water and appropriate animal-friendly disinfectants will help prevent build of pathogens in the farm environment.

Removal of organic matter from surfaces with hot water or a high-pressure sprayer is a highly recommended way of cleaning. Disinfectants are usually selected based on the mechanism of action, presence of organic matter, water quality, pathogens, dilution rates, corrosive properties and animal safety.

Employment of accurate biosecurity protocols will ultimately ensure the best results for any sector of livestock farming.

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39

AQUACULTURE FEEDS

SKRETTING IS THE WORLD LEADER IN THE MANUFACTURE AND SUPPLY OF AQUACULTURE FEEDS, MAKING US AN ESSENTIAL LINK IN THE FEED-TO-FOOD CHAIN. WE APPLY OUR KNOWLEDGE OF INGREDIENTS AND THE NUTRITIONAL NEEDS OF FISH AND SHRIMP TO DEVELOP INNOVATIONS THAT ACHIEVE OPTIMUM NUTRITIONAL VALUE, SUSTAINABLE PRODUCTION AND ECONOMIC PERFORMANCE AS WE SEEK TO FULFIL OUR COMPANY-WIDE MISSION OF 'FEEDING THE FUTURE'.

SKRETTING'S MISSION: FEEDING THE FUTURE

O

ur mission is based on the challenge of feeding a global population that is forecast to reach 9 billion people by 2050. Along with the fast growing world population, increased urbanization, a growing middle class and changing diets will lead to a surge in demand for protein, especially in emerging markets. Our ambition is to contribute to meeting the rising food needs in a sustainable manner. We will do this by constantly seeking innovative ways to raise the

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efficiency and nutritional value of our products, the productivity of our activities and those of our customers, and to reduce the environmental impact of our value chains. Sustainability is in the nature of our business.

The vision that inspires us “In a world with limited natural resources and a growing population, there is a rising demand for high quality meat, fish and shrimp. We will be the global leader in providing innovative and sustainable nutritional solutions that best support the performance of animals, fish and shrimp.”

Skretting is an essential link in the feed-to-food chain. We apply our knowledge of ingredients and the nutritional needs of fish and shrimp to deliver optimum value to producers from

limited natural resources. We are supported in this position by world class innovation and technical capabilities.

Some innovations are global solutions that can be adapted to multiple species and markets, while others resolve individual customer issues or deliver advances for a specific species or region.

The values we live by Skretting follows a global culture that is open, in which all our people care deeply about what they do, about each other and the environment in which they work. To fulfil our mission of Feeding the Future, we adhere to four clearly defined core values Innovative, Caring, Collaborative and Capable - which are adopted throughout the group.

MARCH APRIL 2018