Market Trends of Middle East and Africa Free-From Food Industry
This section covers the major market trends shaping the MEA Free-From Food Market according to our research experts:
Rising Awareness on Clean Labeling in Africa
Clean-label ingredients are consumer-friendly ingredients, which are natural, organic, non-GMO, and very minimally processed. The omission and elimination of intolerable and allergenic ingredients in clean-label products is facilitating the market for free-from foods in Africa.
The clean label trend started more recently in the African countries especially in South Africa, Kenya, Nigeria and Egypt but is growing fast year on year. Therefore, clean label market can be considered to be a developing market in Africa.
In Egypt, the free-from trend is forcing the bakery industry to reconsider the traditional preservation methods and replace chemical preservatives with natural alternatives to guarantee the clean label.
Growing consumer awareness of food ingredients and the desire for simple, natural foods have forced food manufacturers to develop products with a clean label appeal. This trend is only significant in the urban areas of Egypt and among the effluent class.
The Increasing Consumption of the Free-From Food in UAE
Being an import driven country, the United Arab Emirates imports majority of its gluten-free products from Europe, the United States, and Australia. Some of the international brands offering gluten-free products in the UAE market are Schär, Gerblé products from Nutrition and Santé, Choithrams (gluten-free bread), Barkat gluten-free pastas, and Alara gluten-free cereals.
With the growing demand for gluten-free and allergen free products in the UAE market, many regional players are also emerging in the market. For instance, Areej Jomaa operates a 100% gluten-free bakery in Dubai, where all the gluten-, lactose-, and allergen-free products are available.
Moreover, the online retail plaforms are too occupying this space in the country for instance, the GlutenFree-Supermarket.ae is an online shop selling all gluten-free food items, including dry goods, such as cereal, pasta, bead, sweets, pastries, and condiments.
