DUBAI // Shoppers will be able to buy organic halal meat in supermarkets within three months.
It will be available in Carrefour hypermarkets across the country and some independent butchers in Dubai. Organic halal meat has been available only from hotels and restaurants.
OBE Organic, an Australian family business, plans to ship 500 kilograms of the meat each month, starting from the end of March. The company soon hopes to increase that to 1,300kg.
"Consumers in the UAE are learning about the benefits of a new organic lifestyle," said Dalene Wray, the company's regional manager in Asia and daughter of the chairman, David Brook.
"They understand that they have choices and can choose to make organic food a part of their daily diet."
Mr Brook heads a cooperative of Australian farmers with 25,000 head of cattle and more than 7 million hectares of grazing pasture - an area almost as big as the UAE.
The area is in the rich Channel Country, mostly in the north-east state of Queensland but spreading into the Northern Territory, South Australia and New South Wales. The animals are slaughtered in a certified organic abattoir in Brisbane.
OBE's halal certification has been approved by the Government.
"It is important that we provide the opportunity to consumers to have access to our clean, safe, halal organic beef from Australia," said Ms Wray.
The company already exports meat to Kuwait, Egypt, Japan, South Korea, Hong Kong, Taiwan, Singapore, Malaysia, Indonesia and North America.
"We will start with Carrefour in Dubai's Mall of the Emirates, Mirdif City Centre, and Marina Mall in Abu Dhabi," said Dariush Rakhshani, the manager of the meat's local distributor, Country Hill International.
"It will also be sold at some independent butchers' shops in Dubai, such as Prime Gourmet on Sheikh Zayed Road."
Organic food has grown in popularity in the UAE over the past few years.
"Overall, organic is a good way to go," said Stephanie Karl, a nutritionist at the Dubai London Clinic. "It's not always practical or available … organic food is a luxury but a great choice."
cmalek@thenational.ae
COMPANY%20PROFILE
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How to play the stock market recovery in 2021?
If you are looking to build your long-term wealth in 2021 and beyond, the stock market is still the best place to do it as equities powered on despite the pandemic.
Investing in individual stocks is not for everyone and most private investors should stick to mutual funds and ETFs, but there are some thrilling opportunities for those who understand the risks.
Peter Garnry, head of equity strategy at Saxo Bank, says the 20 best-performing US and European stocks have delivered an average return year-to-date of 148 per cent, measured in local currency terms.
Online marketplace Etsy was the best performer with a return of 330.6 per cent, followed by communications software company Sinch (315.4 per cent), online supermarket HelloFresh (232.8 per cent) and fuel cells specialist NEL (191.7 per cent).
Mr Garnry says digital companies benefited from the lockdown, while green energy firms flew as efforts to combat climate change were ramped up, helped in part by the European Union’s green deal.
Electric car company Tesla would be on the list if it had been part of the S&P 500 Index, but it only joined on December 21. “Tesla has become one of the most valuable companies in the world this year as demand for electric vehicles has grown dramatically,” Mr Garnry says.
By contrast, the 20 worst-performing European stocks fell 54 per cent on average, with European banks hit by the economic fallout from the pandemic, while cruise liners and airline stocks suffered due to travel restrictions.
As demand for energy fell, the oil and gas industry had a tough year, too.
Mr Garnry says the biggest story this year was the “absolute crunch” in so-called value stocks, companies that trade at low valuations compared to their earnings and growth potential.
He says they are “heavily tilted towards financials, miners, energy, utilities and industrials, which have all been hit hard by the Covid-19 pandemic”. “The last year saw these cheap stocks become cheaper and expensive stocks have become more expensive.”
This has triggered excited talk about the “great value rotation” but Mr Garnry remains sceptical. “We need to see a breakout of interest rates combined with higher inflation before we join the crowd.”
Always remember that past performance is not a guarantee of future returns. Last year’s winners often turn out to be this year’s losers, and vice-versa.
CRICKET%20WORLD%20CUP%20QUALIFIER%2C%20ZIMBABWE%20
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Blackpink World Tour [Born Pink] In Cinemas
Starring: Rose, Jisoo, Jennie, Lisa
Directors: Min Geun, Oh Yoon-Dong
Rating: 3/5
TRAP
Starring: Josh Hartnett, Saleka Shyamalan, Ariel Donaghue
Director: M Night Shyamalan
Rating: 3/5
'Midnights'
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EArtist%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Taylor%20Swift%26nbsp%3B%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3ELabel%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Republic%20Records%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3ERating%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%204%2F5%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
Why it pays to compare
A comparison of sending Dh20,000 from the UAE using two different routes at the same time - the first direct from a UAE bank to a bank in Germany, and the second from the same UAE bank via an online platform to Germany - found key differences in cost and speed. The transfers were both initiated on January 30.
Route 1: bank transfer
The UAE bank charged Dh152.25 for the Dh20,000 transfer. On top of that, their exchange rate margin added a difference of around Dh415, compared with the mid-market rate.
Total cost: Dh567.25 - around 2.9 per cent of the total amount
Total received: €4,670.30
Route 2: online platform
The UAE bank’s charge for sending Dh20,000 to a UK dirham-denominated account was Dh2.10. The exchange rate margin cost was Dh60, plus a Dh12 fee.
Total cost: Dh74.10, around 0.4 per cent of the transaction
Total received: €4,756
The UAE bank transfer was far quicker – around two to three working days, while the online platform took around four to five days, but was considerably cheaper. In the online platform transfer, the funds were also exposed to currency risk during the period it took for them to arrive.
The%20specs
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The%20specs%3A%20Macan%20Turbo
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Israel Palestine on Swedish TV 1958-1989
Director: Goran Hugo Olsson
Rating: 5/5
Specs
Price, base: Dhs850,000
Engine: 3.9-litre twin-turbo V8
Transmission: Seven-speed automatic
Power: 591bhp @ 7,500rpm
Torque: 760Nm @ 3,000rpm
Fuel economy, combined: 11.3L / 100km
Honeymoonish
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The Gandhi Murder
- 71 - Years since the death of MK Gandhi, also christened India's Father of the Nation
- 34 - Nationalities featured in the film The Gandhi Murder
- 7 - million dollars, the film's budget
The specs
Engine: 2.4-litre 4-cylinder
Transmission: CVT auto
Power: 181bhp
Torque: 244Nm
Price: Dh122,900
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Confirmed%20bouts%20(more%20to%20be%20added)
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Company%20Profile
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Company profile
Name: Infinite8
Based: Dubai
Launch year: 2017
Number of employees: 90
Sector: Online gaming industry
Funding: $1.2m from a UAE angel investor