Madinah Munnawara is currently in the midst of its annual date season, celebrating the thriving date industry that has contributed significantly to the Saudi economy. Over the past three months, the region has produced more than 50 million kilograms of dates, injecting over $149 million into the Saudi economy.
The theme for this season is “From Madinah to the World.” It includes various activities to showcase the importance of the date industry, featuring experts and prominent farmers presenting diverse date varieties. Five cultural exhibitions have been organized in central hotels and major malls, where visitors can sample Saudi coffee and regional date varieties while receiving detailed information about the fruits. In addition, agricultural workshops are being held to educate attendees on effective methods to prevent pest infestations.
Ayman Al-Sayed, the director of the Ministry of Environment, Water, and Agriculture’s regional branch, explained that the season incorporates a tent for agricultural services located near the main date market auction. The purpose of this tent is to provide farmers with agricultural guidance, covering topics such as pesticide usage and modern irrigation techniques. It also includes a section dedicated to the popular organic agriculture program in the region’s organic farms, with explanations of the Saudi Good Agriculture Practices Program by agricultural experts.
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Al-Sayed further outlined the remarkable production figures over the last three months, where Madinah saw the production of 42 million kilograms of dates, valued at over SR530 million (approximately $141 million). During the same period, permits were issued for 413 date shipments, totaling an additional 8.7 million kilograms in volume and SR30 million in value, through Prince Mohammed bin Abdulaziz International Airport.
Notably, the region’s farms imported 79,000 vehicles for the date market, with supervisory teams working diligently to inspect imported products, ensuring their safety and conducting guidance tours.
The Ministry’s regional branch is actively promoting date production through various initiatives. These include workshops for farmers, platforms for selling premium date preservation containers, and the establishment of websites for domestic and international date product exports. These measures aim to fulfill both local and global market demands while highlighting the vital role of the palm and date sector in agricultural and economic production, aligning with the objectives of Vision 2030.
In 2022, Saudi Arabia exported 321,000 tons of dates valued at SR1.28 billion. The Ministry of Environment, Water, and Agriculture reported that the annual date production in the Kingdom in 2022 exceeded 1.6 million tons, featuring over 300 date varieties. The country is home to more than 34 million date palms, with the Qassim region leading with 11.2 million palm trees, followed by Madinah with 8.3 million and Riyadh with 7.7 million. The Eastern region boasts 4.1 million palm trees.
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