Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund (PIF) – which is the kingdom’s sovereign wealth fund – plans to invest $320 million (SAR1.2 billion) over the next 10 years to develop its national coffee industry and boost production to 2,500 tonnes annually.
On Sunday, it announced the launch of the Saudi Coffee Company which will establish a dedicated academy to train local talents, entrepreneurs, coffee plantation owners, and farmers.
The company will work in partnership with the private sector and will have a strong focus on achieving sustainability across the production, distribution, and marketing aspects of the coffee supply chain.
It will do this by “implementing the highest standards and global best practices to empower the national industry’s growth, create new jobs, and promote Saudi Arabia’s capabilities to export the highest-quality coffee beans to the global markets,” the PIF said in a statement.
This is part of its Public Investment Fund (PIF) objectives to focus on long-term, opportunistic investments to create opportunities for small businesses and start-ups. The PIF’s strategy focuses on 13 priority sectors including food and agriculture.
The new company has been established to “enable Saudi Arabia’s coffee bean to be a global product in the future,” the PIF said in a statement.
It will play a vital role in developing sustainable coffee production in the southern Jazan region, home to the world-famous Coffea Arabica.
The coffee market in Saudi Arabia has grown considerably in recent years, and domestic market statistics highlight the attractive opportunity presented by the coffee sector.
Market data shows that coffee consumption in Saudi Arabia grew by around 4 percent a year between 2016 and 2021 and is forecast to increase by a further 5 per annum up to 2026, reaching an expected annual consumption of 28,700 tons, according to Euromonitor International.
Over the next 10 years, the company intends to boost Saudi Arabia’s production from 300 tons per year to 2,500 tons per year.
The national production of the Saudi Khawlani coffee beans comes from the mountainous regions of Jazan, Al Baha, and Aseer. Across the three regions, there are more than 2,500 coffee plantations with a combined total of around 400,000 coffee trees.
As part of its role to build expertise across the industry, the company will also localise knowledge and introduce the latest technologies across the planting, harvesting, roasting, and marketing sides of the coffee industry in Saudi Arabia.
Follow us on
