Dubai to have world’s biggest privately-owned date factory

DUBAI: Dubai’s Al-Barakah Dates said it will expand its existing facility to become the world’s biggest privately-owned date factory, the Dubai Media Office reported.
The expansion will result in a massive facility covering a total of 600,000 square feet, which is more than double the company’s existing site.
After the upgrade, which was expected to be completed by early 2022, the new factory will be able to process over 100,000 tons of dates and date products annually – equivalent to almost half of the UAE’s entire domestic harvest.
The facility, which is located at the Dubai Industrial City, will also be equipped with 6,500 solar panels to offset 3,000 tons carbon emissions per year.
Increasing demand for healthier sugar alternatives has helped boost the date industry, as well as modern food technology that has allowed dates to compete with other healthy options.
“Today we have taken the traditional date and transformed it into various ingredients that serve as direct sugar replacements. These include pastes, syrups and date sugars,” Al-Barakah Dates managing director Yousuf Saleem, said.
The expansion will also contribute to the UAE’s national food security efforts, Dubai Industrial City’s Saud Abu Al-Shawareb said.