3rd edition of "Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed Award for Agricultural Excellence" launched

The Authority also announced the opening of applications for the award through its website "smaea.ae", and receiving nominations from farmers and livestock breeders from the various emirates of the country who meet the specified conditions for each of the main and sub-categories.

The Authority revealed that applications are open until November 15, 2024, after which the arbitration, evaluation and field visits will begin to select the final candidates, while the winners will be announced in February 2025.

The announcement of the new version of the award came during a press conference held at the main building of the Abu Dhabi Agriculture and Food Safety Authority, in the presence of Her Excellency Mouza Suhail Al Muhairi, Chairperson of the Higher Organizing Committee of the Award, His Excellency Ahmed Khaled Othman, Vice Chairman of the Higher Organizing Committee of the Award, His Excellency Mubarak Ali Al Mansouri, Chairman of the Competitions and Festivals Committee accompanying the award, and Jaber Mohammed Al Neyadi, Member of the Higher Committee of the Sheikh Zayed Festival.

Mouza Suhail Al Muhairi said: "The agricultural sector, both plant and animal, continues to achieve important steps in adopting the best international practices and contributing to meeting the requirements of the local market. The Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed Award for Excellence in Agriculture comes to enhance these efforts across the Emirates, by providing a competitive environment that stimulates innovation, and encouraging farmers and livestock breeders to adopt best practices and develop sustainable local agricultural and food production. The objectives of the award are in line with the goals of the National Food Security Strategy 2051 and the sustainable agricultural development plans in the Emirate of Abu Dhabi."

"This year's edition of the award holds special national significance as it coincides with the Year of Sustainability for the second year in a row. It builds on the successes achieved by the country last year, which culminated in hosting COP28. However, what we achieved last year pushes us towards greater ambitions linked to the values of sustainability rooted in the national identity and established by the late Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan, may God bless his soul," she added.

The Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed Award for Excellence in Agriculture offers winners cash prizes totaling more than AED 5.3 million, distributed across four main categories and 13 sub-awards, including the Best Farm and Outstanding Estate Award.

The sub-categories include: Best Open Field Farm, Best Greenhouse Farm, Best Fruit Farm, Best Organic Farm, Productive Farms, Small Producers, Beekeepers and Aquaculture Farmers, while the Commercial Farms Award includes two categories: Commercial Plant Farms and Commercial Animal Production Farms. The third main category is dedicated to agricultural innovation, both plant and animal.

In celebration of the values of women's empowerment and their pivotal role in Emirati society, the award specializes in the Distinguished Farmer and Breeder category, which includes two sub-awards for the Distinguished Female Farmer and the Distinguished Female Livestock Breeder.

Moza Suhail Al Muhairi explained: "The award structure covers all sections of the agricultural sector, based on our belief in the pivotal role that all farmers play in developing this vital sector in the country, regardless of the size of their business. Our goal is to spread the culture of excellence and encourage more farmers to explore agricultural innovations and implement them on their farms."

"We are confident that the cash prizes offered by the award and the accompanying competitions to the winners represent an important source of support for farmers to adopt better sustainable solutions on their farms, which enhances their production capabilities and competitiveness in the market. In the long term, we believe that the award will inspire younger generations of Emiratis to explore the important business opportunities provided by the agricultural sector as a viable source of income for local families," she added.

The authority revealed the addition of additional evaluation elements that are in line with its goals of excellence and sustainability, including measuring the water footprint in production, measuring production efficiency and obtaining organic agriculture and good agricultural practices certificates, measuring the cost value of developing farms and estates, and measuring the financial return of the farm, in addition to developing the application mechanism to facilitate the participation of senior citizens and people of determination.

The authority confirmed that it will continue to honor the top five winners in each category, while updating the honoring mechanism for the top three places in line with their distinguished achievements.

The Abu Dhabi Agriculture and Food Safety Authority has established the Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed Excellence Award for Agriculture as an important incentive for farmers and livestock breeders to adopt the best practices in the sector.

Now in its third year, the award has become a quality mark that farmers and livestock breeders seek to obtain as a certificate of confidence in national products and their ability to contribute to meeting the requirements of the local market.

In this context, Her Excellency Moza Suhail Al Muhairi said: "We at the Abu Dhabi Agriculture and Food Safety Authority continue to work to support sustainable agricultural practices to enhance the competitiveness of local agricultural products to ensure the availability and safety of food. The Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed Excellence Award for Agriculture comes to provide an integrated system of honoring in the agricultural sector. However, obtaining the award does not mean merely honoring a specific agricultural initiative on the farm, but rather a quality mark for the winners' products. Hence, we call on consumers in the Emirate of Abu Dhabi and the various emirates of the country to follow the stages of the award, learn about the winners in the various categories, and ensure their support and choose local products, given their distinguished quality, health and safety standards."

The Authority confirmed its intention to participate in the upcoming edition of the Sheikh Zayed Festival, and revealed the initial plans for the activities and events that it will host in its pavilion, which include 5 main festivals, including the new look of the Al Wathba Agricultural Festival, the Al Wathba Food Festival, the Al Wathba Livestock Festival, the Al Wathba Honey Festival, and the Flower Festival, in addition to organizing 10 different livestock auctions.

Moza Suhail Al Muhairi confirmed that the Sheikh Zayed Festival is one of the most prominent events that the Authority is keen to participate in, and to use its platform to introduce the thriving agricultural sector in the Emirate of Abu Dhabi, in addition to organizing competitions to honor distinguished practices in the sector, which include various fields, starting from agricultural crop categories and passing through design, packaging and presentation methods, and reaching cooking and other distinguished competitions that attract wide turnout from all over the Emirate of Abu Dhabi.

It is noteworthy that the Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed Award for Agricultural Excellence attracted 676 participants in the main categories of the award in its first and second sessions, while 107 winners won in its various categories, and the total prizes in the two sessions exceeded 16.7 million dirhams. (ANI/WAM)