Ahead of Gulfood Manufacturing 2026, ULMA Packaging Middle East’s Gamal Ali on sustainability, waste reduction and why food security starts long before the shelf.
Long before a product reaches a shopping cart, packaging has already done a great deal of quiet work: keeping food fresh, keeping it safe and keeping it edible long enough to reach the people who need it. ULMA Packaging, a global manufacturer of packaging machinery and complete packaging solutions, spends its time on exactly that problem. Ahead of Gulfood Manufacturing 2026, Managing Director Gamal Ali of ULMA Packaging Middle East sat down to talk about what food security means for the business this year, how the company is responding to pressure across the industry and where the packaging world is headed next.
Food Security Starts Long Before The Shelf
For Gamal, food security is not a single moment but a full journey, and packaging plays a role at every stage of it. “For ULMA Packaging, food security begins with protecting food throughout its entire journey, from production to the consumer,” he explains. “Packaging is not simply about containing a product, it is about preserving quality, extending shelf life, reducing food waste.”
Across the Middle East, that journey is getting renewed attention, with governments and food producers investing heavily in local manufacturing to strengthen supply. ULMA sees its part in this as practical support, helping producers work more efficiently while keeping environmental impact in check. Under its #ULMAweCare sustainability strategy, the company helps customers “reduce packaging material, adopt recyclable and compostable materials where suitable, and extend product shelf life without compromising food safety.” As Gamal puts it, cutting food waste is “one of the most effective ways packaging can contribute to sustainability and food security.”
Responding To Pressure With Tailored Solutions
Food manufacturers today are being asked to do a lot at once: run efficiently, meet sustainability targets, automate where possible and keep product quality consistent. Gamal says ULMA’s answer is to avoid a blanket approach and instead work through each customer’s specific application. “We help them optimize packaging design, reduce material consumption, improve line efficiency and prepare for future sustainability requirements.”
Innovation sits at the centre of that work. ULMA continues to invest in technology that allows its machines to run thinner films, recyclable mono-materials, fibre based packaging and compostable materials, all while holding onto productivity, food safety and package integrity. Through its Technology Centre and ongoing research, the company keeps developing solutions aimed at both operational performance and environmental responsibility.
What ULMA Is Bringing To Gulfood Manufacturing
Gulfood Manufacturing has become a fixture on ULMA’s calendar, and Gamal describes it as a chance to hear directly from the market. “Gulfood Manufacturing is one of the most important events for the food manufacturing industry in our region,” he says. “It provides an excellent opportunity to exchange ideas with customers, understand evolving market needs and showcase innovations that create real value for food processors.”
This year, visitors can expect a look at how digital connectivity and sustainable packaging come together on the production line, with a focus on productivity, waste reduction and equipment effectiveness. Gamal also points to the breadth of what ULMA will have on display, noting that the company’s portfolio “enables us to offer the most appropriate packaging solution” for a given need. Beyond the machines themselves, he says the real value lies in conversation: understanding what customers will face down the road and helping them plan for it.
Four Trends Shaping The Market
Population growth, food security investment and changing consumer habits are pushing the Middle East food industry forward at pace, and Gamal points to four trends in particular.
Automation is helping manufacturers keep production moving while addressing gaps in available labour. Sustainable packaging is drawing rising demand, with recyclable and mono-material options becoming a standard request rather than an exception. Food waste reduction continues to shape packaging design, with technologies built to extend shelf life and protect product quality throughout the supply chain. And digitalisation, under the banner of Industry 4.0, is giving manufacturers connected systems that let them monitor equipment and make sharper production decisions.
For ULMA, these threads all lead back to the same idea. “Sustainability and productivity go hand in hand,” Gamal says. “Our objective is not only to help customers reduce the environmental footprint of their packaging, but also to improve competitiveness through smarter, more efficient packaging solutions that are ready for the future.”
Q&A with Gamal Ali, Managing Director, ULMA Packaging Middle East
What do food security and resilience mean for your business this year?
For ULMA Packaging, food security begins with protecting food throughout its entire journey, from production to the consumer. Packaging is not simply about containing a product, it is about preserving quality, extending shelf life, reducing food waste. Across the Middle East, governments and food producers are investing heavily in local manufacturing to strengthen food security. Our role is to support this transformation by providing packaging solutions that improve production efficiency while reducing environmental impact. Through our #ULMAweCare sustainability strategy, we help customers reduce packaging material, adopt recyclable and compostable materials where suitable and extend product shelf life without compromising food safety.
How are you navigating current industry pressures?
Food manufacturers are facing increasing pressure to improve efficiency while meeting higher expectations for sustainability, automation and product quality. Our approach is to work closely with customers to identify the most suitable packaging solution for each application rather than applying a one size fits all approach. Innovation plays a central role in this strategy. ULMA continuously invests in new technologies that enable machines to process thinner films, recyclable mono-materials, fiber based packaging and compostable materials while maintaining productivity, food safety and package integrity.
What are you preparing or looking forward to at Gulfood Manufacturing?
Gulfood Manufacturing is one of the most important events for the food manufacturing industry in our region. It provides an excellent opportunity to exchange ideas with customers, understand evolving market needs and showcase innovations that create real value for food processors. This year we look forward to demonstrating how digital connectivity and sustainable packaging can work together to improve productivity, reduce waste and enhance overall equipment effectiveness.
What key trends are you seeing in the market?
The Middle East food industry continues to evolve rapidly, driven by investment in food security, population growth and changing consumer expectations. We see four major trends shaping the market: greater automation, sustainable packaging, food waste reduction and digitalisation through Industry 4.0. At ULMA Packaging, sustainability and productivity go hand in hand.
Conversations like this one are exactly why Gulfood Manufacturing stays on the calendar for anyone working in food and beverage production across the region. Packaging technology, sustainability and supply chain planning all land on the same show floor, giving the industry a place to compare notes and set direction for what comes next.
Register now to be part of the conversation at www.gulfoodmanufacturing.com.
