A sip of health and heritage: How date seed coffee is changing Iraq’s beverage scene

An entrepreneur is transforming date seeds into a sustainable, caffeine-free brew that honours the country’s rich heritage

Iraqi entrepreneur Jaber Abdul-Azeez Hussein, left, examines date seeds during the process of making date seed coffee. Photo: Jaber Abdul-Azeez Hussein

In a country renowned for its sweet, tasty dates, Iraqi entrepreneur Jaber Abdul-Azeez Hussein is breaking new ground by creating Iraq's first home-grown date seed coffee, transforming discarded seeds into a rich, nutty brew that delights consumers and reduces waste.

“We [normally] throw away large quantities of dates seeds, which are not being utilised properly despite holding so much potential,” Mr Hussein, who lives in the northern city of Kirkuk, told The National. “Dates represent Iraqi identity, so I wanted to create something that honours our heritage while offering something entirely new."

It all started in 2018, when he was a student preparing for graduation from the Food Sciences College in Babil province, south of Baghdad, and chose to base his research on the question: what if the humble date seed, discarded by the tonne, could be transformed into something extraordinary?

Mr Hussein, now 28, said that while he was familiar at the time with the process of making date seed coffee, he still needed to find the right blend of herbs and spices to create a particular flavour that would meet consumer tastes.

“We looked into experiences from foreign and Arab universities in the UAE, Saudi Arabia and Jordan because they are already advanced in this field and have different products, so we decided to have our own,” he said.

He arrived at his recipe after months of experimentation and started the commercial production in mid-2019. Sales were slow at first but increased over the years, and particularly in recent months after launching a marketing campaign on social media.

Between the 1950s and 1970s, Iraq was the world’s top grower of dates, producing nearly one million tonnes a year. The country had about 32 million date palm trees.

But those numbers began to drop after the Iraq-Iran war broke out in the 1980s, followed by the First Gulf War of 1990-91 to expel Saddam Hussein’s army from Kuwait and the ensuing UN-imposed economic sanctions.

By 2003, the number of palm trees was down to only nine million and date production had dropped to about 200,000 tonnes a year, according to Agricultural Ministry figures. Two years later, the government set up the Date Palm Board and offered farmers subsidised fertilisers and insecticides, and soft loans to expand their orchards, as well as facilities for exporters.

Since then, hope has grown of reviving the palm industry, which has been badly battered by decades of war, mismanagement and neglect. Today, Iraq has about 22 million palm trees, according to the Agriculture Ministry. The country produced more than 700,000 tonnes of dates last year, of which about 650,000 tonnes were exported.

This revival has encouraged investors to pour money into bigger farms and offered an opportunity for related projects to young entrepreneurs such as Mr Hussein. Currently in Iraq, only a fraction of the date seeds left over from the production of pitted dates or date paste are used – either as feed for animals and poultry or as fertiliser.

Date seed coffee has been gaining popularity in many countries due to its unique taste and as a caffeine-free alternative to traditional coffee that is loaded with antioxidants. Mr Hussein says the beverage also offers numerous potential health benefits, including lowering blood pressure and body temperature, and is used as medicinal food for bronchial asthma, coughs, kidney stones and weak memory due to its high amino acids.

In addition, consumption of date seed coffee has the potential to reduce blood glucose levels in people with diabetes, he said.

Mr Hussein sources his seeds from date factories in the Kirkuk area where his production is based. The manufacturing process starts with washing the seeds carefully, then roasting and grinding them before adding natural herbs and spices for a unique flavour. His company currently offers only a cardamom and herb-infused blend but more varieties are planned in the near future, Mr Hussein says.

Monthly production is 6-7 tonnes, and the company now has up to 150,000 loyal customers. It receives thousands of orders a month – up from five or fewer when it started – after launching its new marketing strategy.

For Mr Hussein, his date seed coffee is more than a business – it is a symbol of Iraq’s resilience and identity. “The most important thing is that I want Iraqis to feel proud and confident in a national product as well as the Iraqi identity that we present in our products,” he said.

Indeed, his coffee has struck a chord with Iraqis eager for something new yet familiar. “It’s a drink that feels like home. It’s rich, earthy brew that resembles traditional coffee but carries a unique nutty sweetness,” says Amal Al Nour, a regular customer from Basra in southern Iraq. The coffee helped lower her blood sugar level and blood pressure, she said.

She spoke of her sorrow after Basra lost millions of palms trees during the Iraq-Iran war, and later because of a lack of water and climate change.

“Palm trees were in every corner in Basra, but we lost them and we lost our heritage with them. It hurts us,” she says. “This coffee is a good step to preserve heritage and enhance the national identity.”