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This report highlights the food processing industry, its drivers, key players, and market landscape in the Caribbean Basin. The region relies heavily on imports, and the United States is the largest supplier of food ingredients.

The United States is a major trading partner with the Dominican Republic (DR). The DR is the largest economy in the Caribbean and the seventh-largest economy in Latin America. Since the Dominican Republic-Central America Free Trade Agreement (CAFTA-DR) went into effect for the DR in 2007, U.S. agricultural exports to the DR have increased from $1 billion in 2007 to $2 billion in 2024.

In the Caribbean region, sales value in the retail grocery sector increased by 3 percent in 2023. This is due in part to the rise in tourism in many markets, which is boosting economic growth. The largest grocery retail markets are Trinidad and Tobago, Guadeloupe, and the Bahamas.

The UAE's food processing sector is thriving, driven by robust economic growth and domestic consumption. With 568 predominantly small- and medium-sized food and beverage processors, the UAE hosts over 2,000 food and beverage manufacturing companies that generate $7.63 billion in annual revenue.

The United States solidified its position as one of the four leading suppliers of consumer-oriented agricultural products to the United Arab Emirates (UAE) in 2022, contributing more than $1 billion in value.

Sales in the Caribbean retail grocery sector decreased by 1.7 percent in 2022, primarily as the result of closing retail outlets in the French West Indies.

The United Arab Emirates' food processing sector continues to expand, bolstered by strong economic growth and local demand. There are over 568 food and beverage processors and manufacturers in the UAE, most of which are small to medium size.

In the past 10 years the food retail segment in the United Arab Emirates has grown rapidly, with the opening of large-scale hypermarkets, supermarkets, convenience stores, online retailers, and home delivery services all catering to an expanding...

The United Arab Emirates' food processing sector is expanding due to significant public and private sector investments, low regional tariffs, and a convenient geographic location bolstered by excellent infrastructure. There are over 568 food and...

The Caribbean retail grocery sector continued on the upswing in 2021. The region increased its imports of consumer-oriented agricultural products by 14 percent in 2021, reaching an estimated $2.45 billion. The outlook calls for moderate growth as the region continues on the path to recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic and markets such as Guyana and Turks and Caicos Islands emerge as larger players in the regional context.

The United Arab Emirates (UAE) is home to 9.8 million people. It ranks among the world’s richest in terms of per capita wealth. According to the International Monetary Fund in 2020, the UAE had a gross domestic product (GDP) of $421 billion, and a per capita spending level in line with that of developed economies, $35,000.

The United States is one of the top three leading suppliers of imported consumer oriented agricultural products to the United Arab Emirates (UAE) with a total of $737 million in 2020, a 29.8 percent decrease from 2019 due to the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak.