Mondelēz International emphasizes opportunity to drive manufacturing innovation and quality at Gulfood Manufacturing 2015

Dubai 28th October 2015: Mondelēz International emphasized the opportunity to drive F&B manufacturing innovation and quality in the Middle East, during high level discussions taking place at the Gulfood Manufacturing Conference, taking place in Dubai this week.

Experts from Mondelēz International joined business leaders from the world’s leading F&B companies and manufacturing organisations to discuss how companies in the region can harness global food trends to foster innovations and new technologies to facilitate growth and excellence.

Mondelēz International has invested USD $1.5 billion in new or existing manufacturing sites to meet global growth needs since 2012. This includes investments at existing facilities in the Middle East region, in Saudi Arabia and Bahrain, in addition to USD $90 million investment into a second state-of-the-art biscuit factory in Bahrain. The facility will have capacity to produce up to 90,000 tons of biscuits a year such as Oreo, Ritz, belVita, Prince and TUC, as well as Barni cakes, to meet rising double digit demand in the Middle East and Africa.

Alan Smith, Managing Director GCC Pakistan, Mondelēz International took part in a keynote panel discussion exploring technology trends and innovation initiatives. Joining leading multi-national companies he highlighted the opportunity to look at new developments in product taste and design, which are being driven by consumers seeking adaptability, well-being, convenience on the go, and local flavours.

Smith said, “As the world’s largest snacks company we have a critical role to play in empowering consumers to snack mindfully and help them make better choices by creating innovative new products and improving product nutrition profiles. We’re finding ways to meet and anticipate consumer demands in a fiercely competitive marketplace, beginning with consumer insights, which flow through our rich innovation pipeline to how we apply new technology.”

Terry Denton, Director, Mondelēz International Biscuit Bahrain Plant, provided a glimpse into the next generation of food and production facilities during a session on Building

Smart Factories of the Future, as well as presented on ways to Integrate New Manufacturing Technology into Legacy Systems.

With increased attention on food safety across the region, and ongoing changes to trade regulations, achieving superior quality and consumer safety across the food supply chain is vital. Ahmed Mandour, Head of Regulatory and Scientific Affairs at Mondelēz International, discussed the regional regulatory environment. He commented, “This is a trend happening worldwide, and provides opportunities for manufacturers to enhance strong food safety and quality systems for ingredients and products. It is important to identify the intersection between standardisation and innovation, and whether regulatory standards in the region are addressing rapidly the changing consumer needs. By working in partnership, F&B manufacturers and governments can create a robust regulatory system that will support innovation in F&B manufacturing.”

With both governments and F&B manufacturers constantly striving for continuous improvement in the area of food safety, Mondelēz International experts also be shared global best practices at the Dubai International Food Safety Conference hosted by Dubai Municipality. The event is running concurrently to Gulfood Manufacturing and features international experts and scientists from the company’s European operations offering advice on how to ensure robustness of food safety systems to support the region’s drive towards further progress.

Launched in 2014, Gulfood Manufacturing is a sector-specific trade exhibition for ingredients, processing, packaging and food logistics providers who service the rapidly growing food and beverage production industries established in the Middle East, Africa, Far East and Sub-Continent. It is taking place at Dubai World Trade Centre from 27 – 29 October 2015.

The tenth edition of DIFSC brings food safety professionals from across the globe under one room to provide a platform for the food safety community featuring more than 200 presentations, 30 exhibitors and an expected 2000 delegates.