Interplay of food security, agriculture and tourism within GCC countries

For the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries (Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and United Arab Emirates), food security is critical. Currently, these countries import most of what they consume and will continue to do so, since locally producing the majority of food needed is not a viable option. This paper looks into multiple pathways which can be used to secure food imports, particularly foreign agricultural land acquisition. It also looks at the rapidly expanding GCC tourism sector and its relevance to food security. The sector has contributed significantly to the amounts of food consumed and wasted in the region. It is concluded that the way forward for the GCC countries must involve diversified food supplies along with decreasing food demand in the first place.