Food prices decreased in the domestic market by 7% since the beginning of the year until mid-August, compared to the same period of the last year, according to the information coming from Union Co-operative Society.
“The consumer non-food prices fell by 15% during the period from the year 2015 compared to the same period of 2014” said Khalid Al Falasi, General manager of union coop, during the conference held in Dubai yesterday.

Al Falasi attributed the decline in the prices of food and consumer goods in the State to many factors,in the forefront of which is the competition and rising prices of Dollar in addition to the falling cost of imported goods and the increasing production of local and international companies and reduction of demand in the markets.
Falasi expected decline in food goods prices in the country by 10% and non-food goods by 15% during the current year compared to last year as a result of the continuing effect of the factors referred to above.
He pointed out that the frozen poultry came in the first place of food goods that declined since the beginning of this year. The price of one Kilogram reached 8 dirhams, compared to 12 dirhams last year, with a decline by 14%. The fresh poultry prices decreased by 3% . Bottled water prices decreased by 11%.
He explained that the most non-food items whose prices declined were the washing powders, while the cosmetic materials maintained the current prices and did not see any decline. Chocolate products prices fell slightly by no more than 1%.
He said the Society plans to open five new branches until Expo 2020, in Al Warqaa, Khawaneej, Abu Hail, Al Quoz and the International City, because the Society is looking to increase its earnings through expansion in 2015. He expected a profit of around AED 460 million until the end of this year, compared to the rate achieved in the past year.
Al Falasi said that the strategic goal of the Society is to develop and support human resources through an effective policy to improve the performance of the resident human resources, and to achieve a steady increase the percentage of nationalization, in order to be able to achieve the complete nationalization of jobs in the Society, and to raise the efficiency of the processes and tasks.
Al Falasi confirmed said that the financing of new projects will be self-made from the resources of Society, without resorting to any form of borrowing.
He predicted that the Society’s total sales will rise to AED 2.4 billion this year. He pointed out that the share of Cooperative Union Society is more than 50% of the total sales of cooperative societies at the State level. It is targeting for its sales volume to reach AED 5 billion in 2020.
Opening the door of competition
Union Cooperative Society welcomed the approval of the Council of Ministers on the recommendation of the Federal Council to amend the Federal Law No. 13 of 1976, to expand the scope of the consumer cooperative societies and to allow them to open branches in any other Emirate outside its headquarters.
Khalid Al Falasi, Director General of the Society said that allowing the opening of branches of the societies in the UAE motivates the competition between co-operative societies.
At the end of July, the Federal National Council received the approval of the Council of Ministers on the recommendation to amend the Federal Law No. 13 of 1976 concerning cooperative societies to expand their activities to cope with the economic developments and policies of the state in order to be able to achieve its objectives in a way that serves the national economy.
The amendment shall allow cooperative societies to open branches in any other Emirate, and will motivate cooperative societies to recruit the beneficiaries of Social Care programs and who are able to work in them.