Kerry Group plans new regional development centre in Dubai

International food and ingredients firm signs long-term lease at Expo City development

Marjan Faraidooni, Expo City Dubai; Reem Al Hashimy, UAE minister of state for international cooperation and chief executive of Expo City Dubai Authority; Enterprise, tourism, and employment minister Peter Burke, and Kerry Group APMEA chief technology officer Khaled Zitoun. Kerry Group has signed a long-term lease to establish a regional research and development centre in Dubai.

International food and ingredients firm Kerry Group has signed a long-term lease to establish a regional research and development centre in Dubai.

The Irish firm is creating its regional customer co-creation centre in Expo City Dubai — the UAE’s first green innovation district. Expo City is a hub for innovation, sustainability, and future-focused development — the new Kerry facility will serve as a state-of-the-art regional centre for research, development and applications.

Kerry Group will reach over two billion consumers with sustainable nutrition solutions by 2030.

“Our partnership with Expo City Dubai marks an exciting milestone for Kerry as we continue to expand our presence and capabilities across the Middle East,” said Kerry Asia-Pacific, Middle East and Africa president Peter Dillane.

The centre aims to build an ecosystem to connect customers, food and beverage manufacturers, academic institutions, government entities, and industry experts. It will also act as a showcase for Kerry's portfolio of nutrition solutions across taste, proactive health, enzymes, and food protection and preservation.

In a third quarter trading statement in October, Kerry said that business developments in the period included continued investment and expansion of Kerry’s local taste capacity in the Middle East and East Africa. It noted business volumes in emerging markets had increased by 5.3% across the period.

Kerry said on Wednesday it believes the new Dubai centre will allow it to work closer with its customers in the Middle East region, "supporting them from concept through to commercialisation and accelerating the delivery of high quality, market-ready products with greater speed, efficiency and impact".

Expo City Dubai chief of eductation and culture Marjan Faraidooni said Kerry's expertise in sustainable nutrition will be an important addition to the Expo City ecosystem "as we work together to build a decarbonised and resilient future. 

"As the UAE’s first green innovation district, Expo City is dedicated to hosting businesses, innovators and organisations who are actively engineering positive sustainable change."