In the UAE
The tour comprises of four key areas:
The Receiving Centre
This is where the local farmers drop
off their dates. In the Receiving Centre
the dates are received in 3 categories
of quality ‘Good’, ‘Medium’ and
‘Animal feed’. A quality assurance
officer is always present to ensure
that the dates are of the standard
required by AFC. There are over 157
commercial varieties of dates in the
UAE. During the receiving process, it
is of vital importance that dates are
correctly classified according to their
variety and quality of grade. Farmers
are provided with training on how to
take care of their date palms and also
on how to identify the different types
of dates among etc. Receiving of dates
is done between the months of July to
November.
Storage
Dates are divided into two main
categories, organic and regular
dates. Dates are cleaned, sorted
and stored, at a temperature from
0-5 degrees. They are washed three
times under high pressure to ensure
that all sediments and/or insects are
removed. They are dried by cold air
and then stored manually. Organic
dates do not undergo the fumigation
process.
Here are some additional interesting
facts on dates that the AFC shared
with us:
• Dates never spoil. They are
preserved and are available all
yearlong.
• When offered Arabic coffee and
dates; proper etiquette is to take
dates in odd numbers (1, 3, 5 or 7).
The Dallah coffee pot should be in
the left hand of the person serving
and the coffee cup in the right
hand. The coffee should merely
cover the base of the cup. The
person serving will wait for you to
signal for more when you hold the
cup forward or refuse by shaking
the cup.
• Syrup, paste and honey are all
products that can be made from
dates. Sweets are also made
from dates. Some are mixed with
chocolate, pistachio, almonds,
cardamom and saffron.
Finally, a tour of Al Foah Company
will ensure a deeper appreciation for
dates and the role that dates play in
the lives of locals and by extension
Sorting
This entails loading
the dates on to high
tech sorting machinery,
which makes use of a
laser beam to sort the
dates according to the
condition, colour and
sizes. Sorting by optical
sorters gives 4 grades
of dates based on size
‘A’ being the largest and
‘D’ the smallest.
Packaging
This is also made easy
with the use of high
technology equipment.
There are several brands
under the Al Foah
Company umbrella. These include Al
Saad, Date Crown, Al Dhafra Dates
and Zadina, which is produced for Al
Foah Showrooms. Once the products
are packaged, they are prepped
for distribution to local and foreign
customers.
At Al Foah Company, one
their mandates, is that nothing
wasted. Dates that receive are of
unacceptable quality are used
of
is
an
as
date lovers. There is also the perk of
being treated to small samples of the
different products (date syrup, honey,
organic dates and date paste) during
the tour.
feeding for animals and as organic
fertilizer.
In keeping with worldwide and strict
GCC policies for the exportation of
goods, EcoCert carries out periodic
inspections of the facility and Al Foah
Company farms. Al Foah Company
also ensures that the facility operates
at the highest standards through staff
training every six months. Medicals are
also conducted at frequent intervals.
more information on the benefits of
dates in our next issue.
The vision of Al Foah Company
is to bring the remarkableness
of dates into the lives of every
person
around
the globe… if
you are here in
the United Arab
Emirates; this is
an experience
that you can
have in person.
For information
on booking a
guided tour of Al
Foah Company,
please
contact
them via their
website
www.
alfoah.ae.
Keep reading In
the UAE in Teach
UAE Magazine for
After The Bell
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Jan - Feb 2015
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