COVER STORY
LUXURY IN THE GULF
18 JUNE 2018
difference, supplying drinks for the
majority of the country’s hospitals,
schools, army and supermarkets.
Just days after the blockade, the
government approached Oman to find
new suppliers for bottles and yoghurt
containers, secured the support of
state-owned Qatar Airways, opened
new shipping lines and subsidised
food imports. More than 150 million
rials (NZ$59 million) were invested,
and Qatar turned its eyes to unlikely
‘besties’ Turkey and Iran to replace
what food had once come over in
trucks traversing the hot desert of
Saudi Arabia.
Before long, 200,000 tons of vegetables
and dairy products were flooding
the local market from Turkey, Qatar’s
strongest regional ally. Saudi milk was
replaced by Turkish milk; Saudi yoghurt
by Iranian yoghurt; Saudi chicken
by Pakistani chicken. Two months
later, Qatar Islamic Bank announced
a 1.6 billion rial (NZ$637 million),
530,000 sq metre food processing
and storage facility at Hamad Port –
due to be finished next year – which
will be able to process and refine rice,
raw sugar and edible oils, along with
other food products.
In the mall-based supermarkets of
sun-cooked Doha, ‘Quality Made in
Qatar’ branding started appearing
overnight on all products made locally.
Al Kuwari shakes his head at the
success of that campaign. “People
stopped buying brands from blockade
countries,” he says. “They wanted
to support our efforts to become autonomous
in our supplies of dairy and
other foods. Three Qatari companies
we were competing against actually
congratulated us on what we did over
the first few months. We gained the
trust of the local market, thanks to
the supply of good-quality products at
competitive prices.”
He almost seems apologetic at the
success of his company. “I am very
proud, but the blockade has been an
accelerator for companies like ours.
The crisis has changed our vision, and
it has made us grow faster. We have
gained respect both inside and outside
of Qatar, because we have kept
the quality of our products high. We
use Fonterra as one of our suppliers
because of its quality but we also use
ingredients from France, Belgium,
Holland and Germany. It is the quality
we are after...and we’re doing it for
our people.
“I am sure the biggest losers in this
blockade are companies in the UAE
and Saudi Arabia. Their actions to
cut us off have actually made food
developers and manufacturers in
Qatar even more successful. We’ve
worked 24 hours, seven days a week
and we’ve overcome what could have
been a disaster.”
QATAR – enriched with oil and
gas – is home to around 2.6 million
people (the vast majority from other
countries) but has traditionally imported
90% of its food supplies. At any
time, it has only a few days of fresh
water in reserve, and at the time of
the blockade, imported nearly all its
eggs and milk. “At first there was
panic,” Banana Island Resort Doha
executive chef Sanjay Makoona says.
“We knew we had to be brave and
proactive. So we went to other suppliers
for our milk and dairy products,
all normally accessed through Saudi
Arabia. “
Banana Island – a strictly alcohol-free
resort located on a sandbar 25
Banana Island Resort Doha by Anantara opened its doors to an elite clientele on January
1, 2015 and delivers genuine Arabian elegance while respecting local culture by offering
an alcohol-free environment. Located on the 129,000 sq metre Banana Island about
3.5km into the Arabian Gulf east of Qatar’s Hamad International Airport, the paradise
sanctuary is accessed via a 20-minute 51-passenger catamaran ride from Shuyoukh Port
or a more exclusive landing via helicopter at the island’s private pad. The resort boasts
a luxury hotel with 24 rooms and 72 family suites, as well as 34 two-and-three-bedroomed
poolside villas, and 11 Maldives-style villas built over water. Banana Island Doha
has a private marina for 33 boats, a 100m surf pool, nine-hole putting course, lagoon
pool, bowling alley, tennis court, bikes and Segways for hire, cinema, botanical garden,
a plethora of dining options and Anantara Spa. It has centres for business, wellness,
diving, family and kids’ entertainment, along with a private 800m beach. www.anantara.
com/en/banana-island-doha
/www.anantara
