Kerry Opens Dubai Innovation Centre and Uses AI Tools to Rework Emirati Dishes

Teams of chefs and scientists will use the Irish food group's Kalaido and Nexus AI platforms to cut salt, sugar and fat in local dishes, with judging at Dubai Future Week.

By Nakoda News Desk

22 hours ago·2 min read

Prefer Nakoda News on Google

Dubai Future Week, organised by the Dubai Future Foundation, runs from 18 to 21 November at Emirates Towers and the Museum of the Future.Photo: وكالة أنباء الإمارات / Handout

Irish food ingredients group Kerry has opened a regional innovation centre at Expo City Dubai, and its first public project is a challenge in which chefs use the company's AI tools to make Emirati dishes healthier. The results will be judged at Dubai Future Week this month.

The Dubai Future Foundation said the "Taste of the Future" challenge will be one of the main events of Dubai Future Week, which runs from 18 to 21 November at Emirates Towers and the Museum of the Future, according to the Emirates News Agency.

Each team includes a chef who leads the recipe work, a content creator who documents the process and a Kerry specialist who provides scientific and technical support. The teams will work in Kerry's innovation labs for 10 days, from 9 to 19 November, to cut salt, sugar and fat in a set of Emirati dishes while keeping their taste. They will use two of Kerry's in-house AI platforms: Kalaido, for product innovation, and Nexus, which supports recipe development and formulation.

On Friday 20 November the teams will present their dishes to a panel of business and food industry judges, alongside a short film of the process. Visitors to the week will be able to taste the dishes and vote for a favourite.

For Kerry, the Dubai site is a commercial tool. Peter Dillane, the group's president for Asia Pacific, the Middle East and Africa, said customers in the region want products built for local tastes "very quickly", and that the centre lets Kerry's AI platforms and scientists test new ideas alongside local chefs in Dubai. The company says it works with regional food and beverage makers to shorten product development cycles from months to days, drawing on more than 1,300 scientists across 60 technology and innovation centres worldwide.

Kerry signed a long-term lease with Expo City Dubai for the facility in December 2025, describing it as a regional hub for research, development and applications. The group first opened a development centre in Dubai in 2013.

Edmond Scanlon, Kerry's chief executive, said better nutrition will only have an impact if people enjoy the taste. Ireland's ambassador to the UAE, Fergal Mythen, said the project showed Irish companies' confidence in the UAE as a growth hub.