First Myplant & Garden Middle East

The new fair is made possible thanks to close collaboration with IEG Middle East offices, a solid and established presence in Dubai's trade fair scenario. The organizers aim to tap into new commercial channels and enter a market with growing potential, driven by a clientele particularly attentive to sustainable development and the enhancement of biodiversity at a local level. On a larger scale, it is also supported by being the main logistics hub in the region and one of the most important in the world.

Myplant & Garden Middle East will also be the only event dedicated to the ornamental green industry supply chain, from production to landscape design, in the Middle East.

The commercial action coordinated with IEG Middle East includes the involvement of a selection of floricultural brands from Europe and beyond: the goal of the first edition is to involve around 70 companies and develop the exhibition across all 5,000 sqm of the available area.

The 9 main exhibition sectors foresee the participation of entities active in the fields of nurseries, flowers, decoration, machinery, technology, pots, services, landscaping, and furnishings.

Scouting and incoming operations for buyers and operators will be organized in collaboration with international agencies. The target audience will include public clients, distribution chains, designers, real estate operators and developers, import-export managers, landscape designers, green space creators, and professionals in the hospitality industry. Myplant & Garden Middle East will also target operators in the Sportsgrounds sector, offering unique expertise in products and services for fields, facilities, and play areas: an important opportunity for companies in the sector to present themselves in a region undergoing major development plans for outdoor sports and bordering Saudi Arabia, which will host the FIFA World Cup in 2034, building 15 new stadiums and implementing a plan for major urban and infrastructural projects.

The Dubai Exhibition Centre (DEC) is the new event venue in Dubai, located within Expo City, the area that hosted Expo Dubai 2020: an innovative and sustainable hub surrounded by 45,000 square meters of parks and gardens and 10 km of cycle paths. The exhibition center extends over an area of 60,000 square meters with 9 pavilions and 5 multi-purpose halls, close to Al Maktoum International Airport (DWC) and the metro station. The Dubai Exhibition Centre DEC hosts 5,000 events, exhibitions, fairs, and international congresses each year.

Myplant & Garden Middle East will debut from November 15 to 17, 2025, simultaneously with the eighth edition of the Italian Cuisine Week in the World organized by the Italian Embassy in Abu Dhabi, in collaboration with the Italian Consulate General in Dubai and the ICE Office in Dubai. The event will focus on the theme of the connection between wellness and taste, with a focus on environmental sustainability, sustainable cultivation technologies, and innovative agricultural practices: themes in synergy with the cultural and exhibition proposals of Myplant & Garden Middle East.

Map of plant import flows in the United Arab Emirates in 2023. © Myplant & Garden/ITC

Opportunities in Dubai and the UAE

Dubai's focus on greenery is part of a strategic development vision, which has translated into the enhancement and preservation of natural resources – the eight protected areas cover 31% of the territory – with the goal of protecting, restoring, and promoting natural ecosystems through scientific research initiatives, monitoring, and landscape protection.

Furthermore, the development of commercial and residential activities towards desert areas and the concentration of tourism, especially in coastal areas (Dubai is one of the most visited destinations in the world), offer ample opportunities for the entry of horticultural products and services: as design materials for urban, construction, and infrastructural development, as a distinctive element in organizing hospitality spaces, as a tool for creating a habitat resilient to climate change, and as a subject for R&D in precision agriculture and sustainable cultivation within a framework of public investments in high-innovation sectors.

The UAE's floricultural import in 2023 settled at $145 million, constantly increasing from $79 million in 2020 to $116 million in 2022. The Netherlands is the leading trade partner (>28% of imports), followed by Kenya (>22%). Ecuador (>8%) and China (7%) vie for third place, far behind the top two countries. Colombia, Thailand, Spain, India, France, and the United States complete the top ten.