ABU DHABI// A date company has put Emirati produce on the map.
Established in 2005, Al Ain-based Al Foah describes itself as the largest date company in the world.
The company has five brands of the ancient Middle Eastern staple, which some believe could have a 7,000 year legacy of cultivation.
“Al Foah has chosen global appeal as its target, which is reflected across the company,” said Dhafer Al Ahbabi, chairman of the board for Al Foah.
To meet the demands of a global market, the company has invested heavily, including improvements to washing lines, production and packaging, he said.
According to the United Nation’s Food and Agriculture Organisation, the UAE is the world’s eighth-largest producer of dates, with 250,000 metric tonnes produced in 2012.
The lion’s share bear the stamp of Al Foah.
The company is taking on the global market with five separate brands, all aimed towards different customers, from bulk brand, Al Saad, to boutique label, Zadina.
Hadef Almessabi, export sales regional manager, said the company exports 80,000 tonnes of dates every year, to more than 47 countries in the world.
To spread its reach and take sweet Emirates dates to the world, the company has agents in a number of countries including Jordan, Morocco, Yemen, Saudi Arabia, Malaysia, Singapore, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, and Syria.
“We have immense contracts with these countries,” he said.
Shipments can range from just a few cartons to several pallets, and as much as whole shipping containers, he said.
Exports represent more than 90 per cent of the total company sales, the company recently reported.
In addition to dates, Al Foah also processes associated products including dates with nuts and chocolate, date syrup, date paste, and date halwa – a sweet confection.
The company works with more than 16,000 date farmers across the UAE, helping them to improve the quality of their product and get a better return.
The company’s assets include its farm in Al Ain, which it describes as the largest organic farm in the world.
It has a total area of 1,321 hectares and more than 70,000 date palms.
In 2014, the company paid out over Dh327 million to 10,000 farmers in the UAE.
“The farmer is considered the backbone of the development of the palm industry in the country and the main axis to improve the quality of dates,” the company said. “Thus, supporting the farmer by meeting his needs is one of the most important priorities that Al Foah Company has made, it the subject of its interests.”
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Made in the UAE
An increasing flow of locally produced goods is positive news for the UAE’s energy dependent economy, but increasing manufactured exports will require overcoming some significant obstacles. Oil and gas, which accounts for 40 per cent of the country’s GDP, has long held the banner for the “made in the UAE” label, but plunging oil prices have once again exposed the perils of having an economy driven by a single powerful industry.
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