The Department of Culture and Tourism – Abu Dhabi (DCT Abu Dhabi) has signed a collaboration agreement with Healthy Living, Abu Dhabi’s government-led movement supporting longer, healthier and more fulfilling lives, to promote healthier food choices across the emirate’s tourism and hospitality sector.
The agreement will bring together tourism, hospitality and
public health stakeholders to develop evidence-informed initiatives aimed at
improving dining experiences for residents and visitors.
Abu Dhabi’s hospitality sector serves millions of meals each
year, creating an important opportunity to encourage healthier lifestyles
through everyday food choices. Under the agreement, DCT Abu Dhabi and Healthy
Living will develop policies and guidance, engage hotels, restaurants and
tourism operators, and use research and evidence to identify, test and scale
effective interventions.
The partnership will also focus on industry awareness,
engagement and communications to encourage participation and innovation across
the hospitality sector.
The collaboration builds on two initiatives introduced by
DCT Abu Dhabi and Healthy Living, in coordination with the Abu Dhabi Public
Health Centre (ADPHC), to improve the food environment across Abu Dhabi’s
hospitality industry.
The first initiative requires all hotel restaurants and food
and beverage outlets operating under a DCT Abu Dhabi-issued tourism licence to
provide at least one healthy option within every adult menu category, including
appetisers, main courses, side dishes and desserts. At least 50% of children’s
menu items must meet approved healthy nutritional standards.
Eligible dishes can be identified through SEHHI, Abu Dhabi’s
approved nutritional classification system developed by ADPHC.
The second initiative focuses on reducing sodium consumption
and supporting heart health by making low-sodium salt the default table option
in place of standard salt. Evidence from a study involving nearly 21,000 people
found that switching to low-sodium salt was associated with 14% fewer strokes,
13% fewer major cardiovascular events and 12% fewer premature deaths.
SalehAl Geziry, Director General for
Tourism at DCT Abu Dhabi, said: “These new policies reflect Abu Dhabi’s
commitment to making health and wellbeing an integral part of the hospitality
experience. By making healthier choices part of everyday dining, we are
creating a more positive experience for residents and visitors while
strengthening Abu Dhabi’s position as a destination for wellbeing. Our
collaboration with Healthy Living demonstrates how tourism, hospitality and
public health can work together to support healthier lifestyles and raise
standards across the sector.”
Dr Ahmed Alkhazraji, Executive Director,
Healthy Living, said: “For us, it’s simple – we want the healthy choice to be
the easy choice. Our collaboration with DCT Abu Dhabi allows us to make
practical, system-level changes across a sector that reach millions of
residents and visitors each year.
“We are already seeing what that can mean in practice – from
changing what’s on the menu to what’s on the table. This agreement gives us the
opportunity to build on that progress, working with the hospitality sector to
test and scale further initiatives that make healthier choices more accessible
across Abu Dhabi.”
Both policies came into effect on 1 July 2026, with a
three-month implementation period allowing establishments to adopt the new
requirements. Full compliance and enforcement will begin on 1 October 2026.
DCT Abu Dhabi and Healthy Living will continue working with
hospitality partners to identify further opportunities to promote healthier
choices, test effective approaches and expand initiatives supporting the health
and wellbeing of residents and visitors across the emirate. -TradeArabia News Service
