Part of Saudi potato farmers’ produce could be exported shortly, according to the Ministry of Environment, Water, and Agriculture.
Local manufacturers who purchase the produce from farmers after concluding contracts with them will handle the spuds’ export.
According to the terms and conditions for the export, cited by the Saudi Gazette, the growers must specify the quantities sold inside the Kingdom and the quantities for export.
In their turn, the manufacturers must conclude purchase contracts with farms that use drip irrigation technology only and ensure that they produce specified quantities for the local market as well as for export.
The conditions also stipulate that the land earmarked for potato cultivation is to be registered with the ministry. Moreover, there should be a valid agricultural registration based on the quantities that will be manufactured, according to the average production per hectare, the equivalent quantities for manufacturing, and the area needed for production.
The manufacturer should also mention the name of agricultural companies and institutions that have agreed to cultivate the quantity of potatoes, the sites to be planted, and sources of irrigation for each site.
It will not be permitted to dig new wells in the contracted sites for potato cultivation. The ministry will verify the cultivated areas, the type and quantity of the product, and its quantity by all available means.
Licenses will be issued for an initial period of one year. There is a condition for the issuance of a license that the total cultivated areas of potatoes shall be proportional to the size of the total need for manufactured potatoes. The total areas where potatoes are cultivated across the Kingdom shall not exceed 7.000 hectares and must be using drip farming technology.
