UAE: US ambassador discusses food, water security, praises vertical farms in UAE – News

Ambassador McCain participated in last week’s Negev meeting in Abu Dhabi as a member of the Water and Food Security Committee

Ambassador Cindy McCain, head of the US mission to the UN agency in Rome, said the US has a good relationship with the UAE when it comes to food and agriculture – a multilateral mission covering global issues.

The U.S. Mission in Rome is the link between the U.S. government and international organizations based in Rome, such as the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), the World Food Program (WFP), and the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD).

“We have a good relationship with the UAE and we are great partners on many issues, food and water being one of them. We use less water in crop development, science, developing better drought-resistant seeds and overall There is a lot of sharing of ideas and management concepts in terms of water,” Ambassador McCain added, adding that universities in both countries are conducting research, exchanges.

“I’m from a state—Arizona—that’s very similar to here. Water scarcity, drought, climate change affect us the same way they affect here. There are great relationships in the region, and we work together to develop better ways of managing land and water,” she said.

Ambassador McCain participated in last week’s Negev meeting in Abu Dhabi as a member of the Water and Food Security Committee. “Our goal is to come to some kind of agreement on what we can and should do with respect to water and food security,” Ambassador McCain said, adding that the talks and discussions highlighted food and water as the biggest current security threats. “We need to address these issues, especially in dry regions of the world like this one.”

She explained that these discussions helped define topics for discussion at the next ministerial meeting and prepare for a possible action plan. “Countries want to be able to develop a plan to help each other, develop storage capacity, share and manage water in an efficient way. In this age of climate change, we must be able to grow more with less. These are All the topics that were discussed, brought to the table and considered in every part of the talks. It turned out really well,” she said.

During his visit, Ambassador McCain visited Emirates Crop One – the world’s largest vertical farm, which was launched in 2018 when US-based Crop One signed a $40 million joint venture with Emirates Airline enterprise. Located near Dubai’s Al Maktoum International Airport, the 330,000-square-meter facility can produce more than 2 million pounds of leafy greens annually.

“We sampled different lettuces and spinach today and it was an amazing place. It’s a different way of growing with less water—reusable recycled water,” she said, adding that being able to grow at the site It is very important for the region to sustainably grow the fruit and vegetable sand lettuce. “It’s cheaper than flying things over, and it’s healthier,” she said.

As millions of people around the world get started, projects like this show that with a little ingenuity, science and technology, a lot of suffering can be alleviated. “Anything new and different that can help sustain communities in arid regions like this or any region is important. It’s growing more with fewer resources,” she said.

The U.S. Mission in Rome also represents the U.S. government and other international organizations, including the International Center for Research on the Conservation and Restoration of Cultural Property (ICCROM). As US Ambassador to ICCROM, she also visited Sharjah’s Mleiha, an ICCROM site and UNESCO-nominated World Heritage site.

“Their work is incredible, and I’m excited to see how they do it and the impact they have on the community,” she added, adding that she’s learned that hard-working people can make a difference. “Seeing what they’ve done here and what they’ve been able to do in the process of protecting their own culture and their community. It’s been amazing,” she said.

On November 5, 2021, Ambassador McCain, wife of the late US Senator John McCain, was sworn in with the support of the Biden administration as the permanent representative of the United States to the United Nations in Rome. She dedicated her life to improving the lives of the less fortunate in America and around the world. She is the past chair of the board of directors of the McCain International Leadership Institute at Arizona State University and serves on the boards of Project CURE, CARE, Operation Smile, HaloTrust, and the advisory boards of Too Small To Fail and Warriors and Quiet Waters.

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