E-commerce in the F&B industry is booming with recent research forecasting it to reach USD71.62 billion by 2028, registering a compound annual growth rate of 17.8 percent. The steep upward trajectory is driven by several key factors, including sweeping consumer shifts towards online shopping for groceries, ready-to-eat food deliveries and healthy produce.
These trends have led to an urgent need for the industry to dig deeper into its e-commerce offerings to level up the ecosystem. Yet, while the segment provides a plethora of opportunities and huge business potential, there remains inevitable growing pains and more work needs to be done to ensure success for all links in the fast-moving digital chain – it is not simply a case of tying up with aggregators or launching a proprietary online delivery service.
Trends, trials, and solutions to truly unlock the e-commerce potential will be explored in great depth for the first time at Gulfood 2022, the 27th edition of world’s largest annual F&B sourcing event, which runs from 13 -17 February at Dubai World Trade Centre (DWTC).
Big brand leaders, food technologists, policymakers, industry heads and start-up pioneers will convene in Dubai to unpack the industry and set the future agenda, with the all new Gulfood Inspire conference featuring dedicated sessions on e-commerce led by some of the sector’s leading innovators, while a focused networking programme will ensure the F&B sector can realise its digital capability.
“E-commerce in F&B is experiencing a meteoric rise thanks to a number of key factors. In this region specifically, it is flourishing thanks to increased high-income potential, high internet penetration, developed logistics network, modern digital payment systems, a growing tech-savvy youth population, and strong government support. As the F&B industry’s undisputed transformative powerbroker, Gulfood will connect and create the future course of the digital marketplace, with crucial insights from producers and aggregators,” explained Trixie LohMirmand, Executive Vice President, Exhibitions & Events, DWTC.
“It will be a coming together of an industry in need of addressing ecosystem challenges and opportunities, which if surmounted can be a huge engine of growth and transformation. What consumers are looking for from the food and beverage industry is very different from just a few years ago, and these new expectations are here to stay beyond 2022,” explained LohMirmand. “Gulfood will focus industry-wide debate on the trends and new value-chain networks that will shape the future.”