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Dubai, UAE: The Italian Trade Agency (ITA) in partnership with the Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs will participate in Gulfood 2026, January 26–30, the 31st edition of the world’s largest food and beverage trade show. Spanning two venues this year, the Dubai World Trade Centre and the Dubai Exhibition Centre at Expo City Dubai, the event mirrors the expanding scale and evolution of the global food industry. Twenty-two companies will exhibit within the Italian Food Lab, alongside 311 Italian exhibitors as part of the Italian Pavilion, reinforcing Italy’s strong and diversified presence at Gulfood 2026.
Italy’s participation is underpinned by the recent recognition of Italian cuisine by UNESCO, which inscribed Italian culinary traditions, formally titled Italian cooking between sustainability and biocultural diversity, on the Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity. As the first national cuisine worldwide to receive this status, Italian cooking is formally recognised as a living cultural system rooted in tradition. Its foundations lie in agricultural landscapes, biodiversity, seasonal produce and the intergenerational transmission of knowledge, elevating Italy’s food heritage on a global cultural stage.
Building on this recognition, Italy’s presence at Gulfood 2026 will focus on communicating the cultural, agricultural and sustainable foundations of Made in Italy food. At the centre of this participation will be the Italian Food Lab, a dedicated experiential space hosting live cooking demonstrations and gastronomic masterclasses throughout the duration of the exhibition. Led by Italian chefs based in the UAE and internationally, the programme will showcase regional diversity, raw material excellence and production practices rooted in sustainability and tradition.
In the first eleven months of 2025, Italy exported €416.9 mln in food and beverage products to the UAE, alongside a total export value of €447 million in 2024. These figures reflect a stable and competitive market, where Italy’s positioning is driven less by rapid volume growth and more by the enduring value of quality, heritage and authenticity.
As of October 2025, Italy’s best-performing food and beverage export categories to the UAE were beverages (€76.5 million), cereal, flour and starch-based preparations (€55.8 million), and dairy products (€32 million), underlining sustained demand for core Italian categories across retail, hospitality and foodservice sectors.
“Italian cuisine goes beyond taste, reflecting a strong bond between people, tradition, and sustainability”, said H.E. Lorenzo Fanara, Ambassador of Italy to the United Arab Emirates. “Gulfood is a key platform to share this heritage, recognized by UNESCO as Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity, with partners and consumers across the UAE”.
Valerio Soldani, Italian Trade Commissioner to the UAE and Oman, added: “Italy’s food and beverage exports to the UAE reflect a mature and discerning market. With €416.9 mln exported in the first eleven months of 2025 and strong performance across beverages, cereals and dairy, the focus today is not on scale alone, but on reinforcing the value proposition behind Made in Italy food. Gulfood 2026 allows us to translate this value into experience, through the Italian Food Lab, masterclasses and direct engagement, showcasing the cultural depth, diversity and sustainability that now carry formal recognition at the highest international level.”
Visitors to Gulfood 2026 are invited to experience the Italian Food Lab and its programme of masterclasses taking place throughout the exhibition days, offering an authentic insight into Italy’s extraordinary food and agricultural heritage.
For high-resolution assets and the press kit, please click HERE
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About Italian Trade Agency
ITA ITA - Italian Trade Agency is the Governmental agency that supports the business development of Italian companies abroad and promotes the attraction of foreign investment in Italy. With a motivated and modern organisation and a widespread network of overseas offices, ITA provides information, assistance, consulting, promotion and training to Italian small and medium-sized businesses. Using the most modern multi-channel promotion and communication tools, it acts to promote the excellence of Made in Italy in the world.
