GCC businesses can secure up to $17,200 in financial, legal and advisory support from Korea Agro-Fisheries and Food Trade Corporation (aT Center), if they import fruits, vegetables and agricultural products from Korea to the region.

Localisation Support Programme is a support programme to resolve difficulties of non-tariff barriers by giving advice on laws, customs, and labelling with assistance from local experts in the countries for export.

This programme is in addition to its support for participation in international exhibition and conferences and includes buyer consulting (market and consumer analysis), food registration and additional fees for each country, local inspection fees, quarantine inspection fee, package design improvement and development.

In addition to these, aT Center supports the international buyers in contract, employment, corporate, customs clearance, quarantine review, HS code and tariff rate, etc.

Any GCC businesses who wish to import Korean fruits, vegetables and agricultural or packed food products to the region, could apply to aT Center and start working on importing Korean food. Traders can contact aT Center’s Dubai office and avail the opportunity.

“We have a very pro-active support system to support Korean food and agricultural products. We offer consultation, paperwork, customs, tariffs, packaging and other areas to make import of Korean food easy to any country in the world,” said Hyouk Kim, Director for Korean Agro Trade Center Dubai.

“Food importers and wholesalers in Dubai, UAE and other GCC markets can avail this opportunity and benefit from financial and technical support from us. We also work to ensure that there are no issues with exports from Korea. It is a seamless process and it is our responsibility to ensure that the local importers do not face any obstacles.”

The UAE is the second-highest consumer of food in GCC. The UAE fruits and vegetables market was valued at $3.73 billion in 2018, and it is projected to grow at a Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) of 9.93 percent during the forecast period (2020-2025), according to a report by Mordor Intelligence.

The drivers identified in this market are favourable government policies, an increase in consumption of fruits and vegetables due to health consciousness, and strong distribution and retail network. The country is witnessing an exceptional exploitation of its agricultural potential, the report said. The growth within fruits and vegetables is likely to be driven by the introduction of new products (like multi-vitamin juice) and improvements in packaging, which gives rise to extended product life cycles.

Hyouk Kim said Korean fruits and vegetables are well-known for their health and nutrition value.

“Foodstuff importers of the UAE could try importing Korean fruits and vegetables which will help the GCC residents and citizens maintain god health all their lives and defeat lifestyle-related diseases such as diabetes and other problems.

“Average Koreans live a healthy and long life – mostly due to the fruits, vegetables and other food that they consume. They use lots of herbs in their food and food preparation is very healthy. People in the GCC can benefit not only from the health and nutrition value, but also from the financial support that we provide to traders who could pass on the benefits to the consumers,” he added.

Korean food, or K-FOOD is gaining popularity throughout the world, especially health-conscious upwardly mobile couples and families, who care about their health, but have little time to worry about cooking and preparation. Korean packed food is becoming very popular and the government is extensively promoting this genre of food across the world, a statement said. – TradeArabia News Service