On 23 of November, more than 10 of the main importers of fruits and vegetables in The Netherlands and EUand number top and highly qualified producers from Middle East were all gathered in EGYZONE, the first international food security forum in the Netherlands.
The main aim was to focus on the mutual cooperation between the Netherlands and Arab countries, in many different fields.
Being attended by His Excellency Mr. Hatem Adelkader, Ambassador of Arab Republic of Egypt), His Excellency Dr. Khaled Hanafy, (secretary of the union of Arab Chambers), Mr. Ahmed Nasr (Founder and general manager of Egyzone) and many decision makers and businessmen added special spirit of success on our first event.
On his side, H.E Mr. Hatem Abdelkader) shed lights on trade between Egypt and The Netherlands and the importance of such kind of events that contributes in expanding trade exchange base and cooperation between the companies of both Egypt and The Netherlands.
Mentioning the role of The Union of Arab Chambers, H.E Dr. Khaled Hanafy general of he confirmed on supporting cooperation between The Netherlands and Egypt, especially and between The Netherlands and Arab countries in general. He also suggested creating The Dutch Zone Egypt that allows making and manufacturing products by Egyptian hands in Egypt according to Dutch specifications, and to be ready for exporting directly.
After welcoming the guests, Mr. Ahmed Nasr started to present Egyzone’s different services such as Import & export, translation, different workshops, e- commerce, exhibition management and business development. He also presented an agenda in all manufacturing sectors such as the pharmaceutical sector, as it is one of the oldest strategic industries in Egypt, as it goes back to 1934. Egypt has given great attention to the priority of achieving self-sufficiency in medicine, and has also adopted policies focusing on developing medicines at the various stages of industry, at the level of raw materials used in medical preparations, basic chemicals, manufacturing and packaging, as well as marketing, selling and exporting and furniture sector as it is considered one of the large sectors in Egypt.
The furniture industry is a labour-intensive and dynamic sector dominated by small and medium and large sized enterprises. Egypt furniture manufacturers have a good reputation worldwide refers to their creative capacity for new designs and responsiveness to new demands. The industry is able to combine new technologies and innovation with cultural heritage and style, and provides jobs for highly skilled workers. Mr. Nasr also talked about many other sectors in 2023.
Mr. Shahid Qari (representative of Hanos Netherlands) greatly welcomed the cooperation with Egyptian companies. It is worth mentioning that Hanos is more than an international catering wholesaler, it doesn’t only present catering supplies but it is a place where craftsmanship and gastronomy come together. It has eighteen branches in The Netherlands and two branches in Belgium.
Furthermore Mr. John Van Adrichem (CFO) representing World Horti Center showed the centre’s willingness to cooperate with Egypt by offering the Egyptian human element all the training needed to be well qualified. As known World Horti Center is the knowledge and innovation center for international greenhouse horticulture. A leading platform where business, education, research and government jointly innovate, connect, inspire and share knowledge. Every year, World Horti Center is visited by 25,000 international professionals, who are looking for connection, knowledge and innovations in horticulture. They connect parties who want to contribute in sustainable food supply and greening the world. World Horti Center is a unique collaboration between education, research, entrepreneurs and the government with an international focus.
Finally, to weave threads, a lecture about “How new technologies could play a key role for food security in Arab countries” by Martin Van Tol took place, shedding lights on the concept that science and technology can make a major contribution, by providing practical solutions. Securing this contribution requires that high priority be attached both to research and to facilitating the real world deployment of existing and emergent technologies.
At the end Prof. Atwa Ahmed, member of The Digital Egyptian Farmer Platform for the Future Success Story Egypt gave a lecture about Smart Agricultural Clinic, the benefits of smart farming, and how it makes farming more connected and intelligent, and how precision agriculture helps reduce overall costs and improve the quality and quantity of products, the sustainability of agriculture and the experience for the consumer. Increasing control over production leads to better cost management and waste reduction. The ability to trace anomalies in crop growth or livestock health, for instance, helps eliminate the risk of losing yields. Additionally, automation boosts efficiency. With smart devices, multiple processes can be activated at the same time, and automated services enhance product quality and volume by better controlling production processes. He added that Smart farming systems also enable careful management of the demand forecast and delivery of goods to market just in time to reduce waste. Precision agriculture is focused on managing the supply of land and, based on its condition, concentrating on the right growing parameters – for example, moisture, fertilizer or material content – to provide production for the right crop that is in demand. The types of precision farming systems implemented depend on the use of software for the management of the business. Control systems manage sensor input, delivering remote information for supply and decision support, in addition to the automation of machines and equipment for responding to emerging issues and production support.
Finally, the event was crowned with success and won the satisfaction of the attendees.
Written by MeaZone Media