A few cooking oils and fats are processed in the UAE, including palm, sunflower, and corn oil. Of the sector’s predominant imports, crude palm oil (CPO) is imported from Malaysia and Indonesia, while crude sunflower oil is imported from Ukraine and Argentina. As of 2019, edible oil was the second most spent-on import, with palm and crude oil being the most imported oils, where a total of AED 113.8 billion went into their importation, a 13 percent increase from AED 100.9 billion spent the previous year. Contributing 2.1% to the UAE’s overall GDP in 2018, edible oils are a crucial sub-sector of the manufacturing industry.
Edible oils are a major contributor of fat in diets, enhancing palatability, shelf-life, and taste. They serve as an important source of energy, essential polyunsaturated fatty acids, and fat-soluble vitamins with significant nutritional and health benefits. Meffier is looking at importing 50 containers of edible oils annually to the UAE from Ukraine and Argentina, with a focus on palm oil and sunflower oil.