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Agriculture

Agriculture news from the Middle East. All the important stories, exclusive interviews, plus authoritative opinion and analysis

Over 400 global food brands are taking part in the SaudiFood Manufacturing show in Riyadh this month

Saudi Arabia’s food factory count rises to 1,300

The total number of food factories operated by the Saudi Authority for Industrial Cities and Technology Zones (Modon) has reached 1,300, across 36 cities. The increase signifies the growing capacity of the domestic food industry and its localisation efforts, the state-run Saudi Press Agency reported. Food industry companies have recorded a growth rate of more […]

farmoing robotics UAE

Agricultural robotics centre planned for the UAE

Khalifa University of Science and Technology and agri-food giant Silal plan to create a centre of excellence for farming robotics in the UAE. The proposed research centre, to be located at Silal’s Innovation Oasis site in Al Ain, Abu Dhabi, will feature a dedicated autonomous greenhouse equipped with various robotic platforms, sensors and Internet of […]

Beekeepers in Jizan province, Addarb, Saudi Arabia. The industry has set a production target of 7,500 tonnes of honey per year by 2026

Saudi Arabia aims to double local honey production

Saudi Arabia has invested SAR140 million ($37 million) to support its nascent rural honey industry, the government said this week.  The country has raised subsidised production by 41 percent since 2021 and wants to double output by 2026.  The Sustainable Agricultural Rural Development Program, known as Reef Saudi, said its funding supported over 10,500 people […]

A coffee farmer in Addayer, Jazan. The southwest Saudi province has 54,000 coffee trees

$16m pumped into coffee farms as Riyadh chases lofty target

Saudi Arabia has invested millions of dollars in the development of the local coffee sector over the past four years, but it is still 80 percent off its production target for 2026. The Sustainable Agricultural Rural Development Program (known as Reef Saudi) has allocated a total of SAR61 million ($16 million) to support over 3,700 […]

Lebanon's caretaker prime minister Najib Mikati has called for 'immediate assistance' from UN agencies

Lebanon PM to declare ‘agricultural disaster zone’ in south

Lebanon’s caretaker prime minister Najib Mikati is to declare the south of the country an “agricultural disaster zone” as the conflict in Gaza batters Lebanon’s beleaguered economy. Speaking at a cabinet meeting on Thursday, Mikati called for “immediate assistance” from UN agencies and Lebanon’s international partners to help the country overcome the impact of a […]

Singapore's Olam Group said Islamic financing gave it access to a new investor pool

UAE investors join Olam Agri’s $625m Islamic facility

Investors from the UAE are part of a global consortium providing Singapore’s Olam Group with a $625 million sharia-compliant financing facility. Other investors are from Malaysia, Singapore and Hong Kong, the company said in a statement. Names of the investors were not disclosed. The facility, initially guaranteed by Olam Group, will transfer to Olam Agri […]

Graderco's annual grain business represents over 25% of Morocco’s imports

UAE’s Invictus buys 60% of Moroccan grain trader 

Invictus Investment Company has acquired a 60 percent stake in Morocco’s largest grain trader, Graderco, and its subsidiaries from Zalar Holding.  The deal will lead to 20 percent growth in consolidated revenues over the nine-month post-acquisition period, said the Abu Dhabi-listed company. Invictus reported revenue of AED8.1 billion ($2.2 billion) and 5.4 million metric tonnes in […]

Foxtail millet could help Gulf food security

Oman invests $4bn in food projects and agriculture

Oman is working on 137 food projects, with a total investment of OMR1.6 billion ($4.2 billion), according to a local media report. The government has unveiled initiatives such as agricultural cities and integrated agricultural plans to address land issues, Oman Daily Observer said, quoting the minister of agriculture, fisheries and water resources Dr. Saud bin […]

Adult, Male, Man tomatoes hydroponics Saudi Arabia Dava agriculture

Hydroponics allows family to become first Saudi tomato exporter

A family company has become the first exporter of tomatoes from Saudi Arabia, thanks to drip irrigation, which has made sending fruit and vegetables from the Gulf to lucrative European markets economically viable.  Dava, a private company set up by the Batal family in 2017, began exporting various types of tomato and “snack peppers” – […]

The UN estimates that earthquake damage will affect more than 20% of Ankara’s agri-food exports

Turkey’s agricultural sector gets $50m boost from Opec Fund

The Opec Fund for International Development (Opec Fund) has extended a $50 million loan to Turkey to support its agricultural and food production sectors in 11 cities severely impacted by earthquakes in February 2023.  The Development and Investment Bank of Turkey (TKYB) will lend the funds to small and medium-sized enterprises to promote a more […]

A worker threshes harvested wheat at a farm in Tunisia. The government has supplied wheat seeds to more than 16,000 small-holder farmers.

Tunisia secures $520m in loans to attack food crisis

The World Bank has approved loans worth $520 million to address Tunisia’s food security challenge, but experts are calling for the government to devise a new long-term policy. A loan of $300 million will supplement the Emergency Food Security Response Project, which aims to minimise the impact of four consecutive years of drought in Tunisia, […]

Almarai will invest SAR5 blllion to expand existing categories such as bakery, dairy and juices

Almarai’s $4.8bn push to advance Saudi food security

Almarai, the Middle East’s largest dairy farm, will spend more than SAR18 billion ($4.8 billion) under its new five-year strategic plan to achieve food security, which is part of the kingdom’s Vision 2030 goal. “Investment in the food industry contributes to achieving food security in the kingdom and the region,” the company said in a […]

ADQ-owned food producer Unifrutti expands in Peru

Unifrutti, a fresh food producer owned by the UAE’s sovereign wealth fund ADQ, has completed two acquisitions in Peru as part of its global expansion strategy. The company has purchased AvoAmerica Peru and Bomarea from US-headquartered Solum Partners and Alpine Fresh, strengthening its presence in the South American nation. The value of the deals was […]

After its stake acquisition, Foursan will hold two of five board seats at date supplier and exporter Medjool Village

Jordan’s Foursan acquires 33% stake in dates exporter

A fund managed by Jordanian private equity company Foursan Group has acquired a minority stake in Medjool Village, a local producer and exporter of Medjool dates. Foursan Capital Partners (FCP) II fund acquired 33 percent in Medjool Village, which is the fund’s seventh investment. The value of the deal was not disclosed. Founded in 2012, Medjool […]

Egypt’s food exports to Europe reached 1.4m tonnes in 2022-23

Egyptian food producer plans European expansion

An Egyptian food producer is planning to expand into European markets on the back of a significant rise in US sales. City Farm, a frozen fruits and vegetables processor, intends to open representative offices in Germany, Belgium and the Netherlands first. CEO Mahmoud Lamei said the plan followed “remarkable success” in the United States and […]

Olam Group said the regulatory framework for listing on the Saudi stock exchange is still being worked out

Olam delays Saudi listing of agriculture unit

Olam Group, which has its headquarters in Singapore, has ruled out listing its agricultural unit on the Saudi stock exchange in the first half of 2024. CEO Sunny Verghese said in August that the company was targeting the dual listing in Singapore and Saudi Arabia in the first half of 2024, which could raise up to […]

Company executives break ground on the new agri terminals complex at Jebel Ali Port, which handles 73% of the UAE’s food and beverage trade by value

DP World’s $150m complex to bolster UAE food security

Global ports operator DP World has commenced construction on an AED550 million ($149.8 million) agriculture terminals facility at Jebel Ali Port, aiming to strengthen food security in the UAE. The complex, developed in partnership with Adroit Overseas Canada and Al Amir Foods, will specialise in storing and processing various agricultural products, including pulses, grains, corn […]

The Emirates Bustanica facility produces 1 million kg of leafy greens a year

Emirates’ catering arm buys out Bustanica vertical farm 

Emirates Flight Catering, the airline’s catering arm, has bought out US-based Crop One’s interest in the Bustanica hydroponic farm in Dubai, making it a fully UAE-owned business.   The farm opened in July 2022 as a joint venture between Emirates Flight Catering and Crop One called Emirates Crop One. The airline catering company says the 330,000 […]

Nadec profits

Nadec profit more than triples to $81m in 2023

Net profit at the Saudi farming giant National Agricultural Development Company (Nadec) climbed to a record high of SAR302 million ($81 million) in 2023, more than tripling from SAR96 million a year ago. The profit rise was driven by a stable market environment, good trading performance, operational efficiency and automation, the company said. Yearly revenue […]

The increase in onion prices was caused by 'floods affecting production in India and some Asian countries' said Oman

Onion prices surge 300% in Oman

Onion prices have increased by 300 percent in Oman, primarily due to a ban on exports from India, according to a local media report. Prices rose from 0.14 baisas ($0.36 cents) per kilogramme in 2023 to 0.47 baisas per kilogramme in December of 2023, before surging to 0.6 baisas per kilogramme by mid-February 2024, the […]