JEDDAH: The National Center for Palms and Dates has officially launched the “Saudidates” platform, an innovative, convenient and efficient business-to-business electronic market where buyers across the globe can buy dates in bulk from sellers in the Kingdom.
The platform was launched recently under the slogan “The Homeland of Dates,” which depicts dates as a national product closely related to the history of Ƶ and aims to showcase the Kingdom’s long history in this sector.
On his Twitter account, Dr. Mohammed Al-Nuwairan, CEO of NCPD, said: “We are launching the ‘Saudidates’ platform, which gathers the best palm fruits within one electronic market, to reach our heritage to the world.”
He said that the launch of the platform was to support and enhance the ability of the Kingdom’s national exports to access global markets.
The platform is comprised of three technical components: A marketing outlet that includes all date traders who have the “Saudidates” brand, in addition to their products and derivatives; a store for selling dates and their products to the consumer; and a warehouse to store the merchants’ products and deliver them to the consumer.
The Kingdom is now taking important steps to place itself as the world’s largest exporter of dates by penetrating the global consumer market to achieve the Kingdom’s vision of increasing non-oil exports.
The launch of the ‘Saudidates’ platform was to support and enhance the ability of the Kingdom’s national exports to access global markets. (Supplied)
Ƶ is one of the world’s leaders in date production, with more than 31 million palm trees and a production volume of more than 1.5 million tons of different date varieties. Abdulrahman Al-Hamdan, the owner of Dates Palms stores in Jeddah, welcomed the NCPD’s decision to export Saudi dates internationally through an official local platform.
He told Arab News: “Yes, the Saudi dates with all its types have already reached the international markets, but that was done through various efforts by local traders and private companies. Now, the ‘Saudidates’ platform will help us sell our products abroad with a guarantee.”
He said that the export of dates abroad would revitalize date farmers in Ƶ, explaining that exporting any product was a good step for the development of agriculture on one hand, and the revival of the Saudi economy on the other.
Dr. Abdulrahman Al-Olayan, an academic, said: “We are very proud of launching the ‘Saudidates’ platform, the trusted government platform that contributes to linking farmers and date producers with consumers all over the world.”
He said that the platform’s goal was to enhance marketing and provide investors and buyers with product choices and information about dates, including their type and origin.
According to a recent report from the NCPD, the Kingdom’s total palms reached 31,234,153, date total domestic production was 1,539,755 tons, and exports increased to 215,343,005 kgm, while Saudi dates were exported to more than 107 countries.
The NCPD has launched many initiatives and programs, in cooperation with the Ministry of Environment, Water and Agriculture, such as registering dates as a super fruit with the Food and Agriculture Organization of the UN in 2019. NCPD is contributing, on behalf of Ƶ, to approve the International Year of Dates, in 2027. The NCPD is also working with the FAO to announce the International Day of Dates.
