The UAE and Italy have long enjoyed robust trade and investment ties, and Agrilevante is poised to enhance collaboration in green technology (GreenTech), boosting agricultural development in the region’s second-largest economy, experts note.
Leaders and organizers of Agrilevante, an exhibition focused on Mediterranean agricultural technologies, report that the UAE’s agricultural machinery market is experiencing sustained growth, which is expected to continue in the coming years.
“Exports of agricultural machinery to the UAE have more than doubled over the last four years, rising from €108 million in 2021 to €234 million last year,” stated Fabio Ricci, Deputy Director of FederUnacoma, the Italian agricultural machinery manufacturers’ association, during a Dubai event.
Referencing Exportplanning’s data, Ricci noted a remarkable 35% growth in UAE agricultural machinery sales from 2021-24, with future growth expected to slow but maintain at least a 5% annual increase.
“Currently, Italian agricultural machinery manufacturers are among the UAE’s primary suppliers, holding a 6.8% market share of Made in Italy products in the emirate,” he added.
According to Istat, Italy’s national statistics bureau, key Italian exports to the UAE include milk processing systems, seeding, transplanting, fertilizing solutions, and livestock farming machinery.
Ricci emphasized that only innovative, advanced technologies, supported by machinery and systems designed to counteract critical environmental factors, can tackle the UAE’s primary agricultural challenges. “The 2025 Agrilevante exhibition in Bari, scheduled for October 9-12, will serve as a significant platform offering a wide range of specific solutions for each crop in the UAE and the broader Mediterranean region. It will be an ideal venue to explore agricultural needs and priorities,” he stated.
Italy — A Preferred Partner
Valerio Soldani, Director of the Italian Trade Agency Office in Dubai, highlighted the strength of bilateral trade and investment relations, noting that both countries are set to further strengthen agricultural ties. “Italy is affirming itself as a preferred partner for enhancing the UAE’s agricultural development. We have a strong presence in the emirate and anticipate substantial participation from UAE companies in Agrilevante 2025,” Soldani informed BTR.
The 2023 edition of the exhibition attracted over 95,000 visitors, including 4,000 international attendees from 27 countries, with 350 exhibiting industries from 20 countries presenting their products and technologies.
The Italian Trade Agency, in collaboration with FederUnacoma, will facilitate business-to-business meetings with exhibiting industries to organize foreign delegates for the October exhibition. About 120 foreign delegates from 38 countries, including the UAE, are expected to attend and experience the latest in agricultural technologies and machinery during the four-day event.
