HE Rashid Mohammed Al Shariqi, Director General of Abu Dhabi Food Control Authority stressed that the visionary leadership of the UAE has been keen on the status of food sector and showed high concern over developing the sector with the focus on food security and the health and safety of society.

He said this while he was addressing the concluding session of Global Forum For Innovations in Agriculture- GFIA 2015, which comes to Abu Dhabi for the second consecutive year, creating a global level platform to know the latest innovations and creative ideas in the field of food and agriculture.

"The UAE President His Highness Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan and His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi and Deputy Supreme Commander of the Armed Forces, Chairman of the Executive Council, have inspired us a lot with their sustained efforts in achieving food security. I would like to express gratitude to our leaders for leading by example" he said.

"On his part, His Highness Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Presidential Affairs and Chairman of the Abu Dhabi Food Control Authority, leaves no stone unturned in spearheading measures that translate our leadership's vision of achieving food security" he added.

He said in the Arab world, food crisis represents the biggest challenge. With the population of the Arab world, by the year 2030, is expected to double, reaching up to 480 million people there serious concern and calls for action in the region to ensure availability of safe and nutritious food to meet the needs of an increased population.

"In the UAE, and Abu Dhabi in particular, we hold the belief that there is no security, no stability or progress, no future without healthy people. So the leadership is keen to provide the necessary facilities to ensure citizens and residents of the UAE with high quality foods based on the safety standards issued" he pointed.

He cited the activities of Abu Dhabi Food Security Center as an example for the continued efforts done in the emirate with the support of leadership.

He said the center was established in order to secure food supplies for citizens and residents by  operates on a strategy aimed at maximizing the production of locally cultivated foods through the use of modern technology, the management of natural resources efficiently and the promotion of agricultural investment abroad.

"We are working on multiple axes to support the entire food security gamut. We are focused on creating non-traditional solutions through strategic inventory management. We also are focused on leveraging modern technology towards the formulation of food polices" he said further.

He explained, "The Fujairah Strategic Storage Project is a great example. The project allowed the storage of grain in the most important strategic location of the Indian Ocean and the Arabian Gulf. We are able to benefit from all the initiatives and food security support projects and the infrastructure services from the government such as the mega-storage warehouses in the Khalifa Industrial City, which includes a storage area of more than 220,000 square meters"

He said Global Forum For Innovations in Agriculture gives hopes and take the spirit to further heights as it proved to be a successful global meeting place for innovations, knowledge and creative ideas to work together enabling the global community stand tall before the future challenges of world hunger, climate change and food security.