RIYADH, 27 April 2006 — Minister of Agriculture Fahd Balghunaim inaugurated here on Tuesday night what is claimed to be the world’s biggest showroom featuring 450 date-based pastries, chocolates and other confectionery items, including 250 different types of dates and date products.
It was a high profile and high-tech launch. An electronically raised white curtain covering the entire showroom was slowly raised as the minister placed his palm on a podium with a scanner mounted on it.
A galaxy of luminaries, including leading businessmen, attended the inaugural ceremony at the new showroom of Ittihad Salehia, which has more than 40 showrooms all over the Kingdom and the Gulf states.
In this context, Fahd Abdulaziz Al-Saleh, chairman of Ittihad Salehia, announced that his company would go public within two years after raising its capital from SR300 million to SR500 million. And in terms of manpower training, it has signed an agreement with the Human Resources Development Fund (HRDF) to upgrade the skills of its employees.
It will also recruit 1,000 Saudis, 25 percent of them women, over the next three years for working in different capacities. While Saudi women would be trained in interior decoration and packaging their products, Saudi males would join the sales team after going through a comprehensive marketing program. The company will invest over SR2 million on human resources development to raise a cadre of highly skilled manpower.
In a novel move, Al-Salehia unveiled its program for setting up a computerized database within its premises that would enable a customer to obtain online nutritional information on dates and their health benefits. A pharmaceutical product line will be added for the benefit of those looking for tablets and date supplements as well as glucose and fructose from dates for the health-conscious.
Speaking to newsmen after the launch, Balghonaim said the Kingdom, the world’s biggest producer of dates with an annual production of 500,000 tons, donates 16,000 tons to the World Food Program (WFP).
According to Abdullah Al-Thinayyan, chairman of the Saudi Arabian Agricultural Bank, the Kingdom, which produces over 400 varieties of dates, plans to set up a commission of date producers to promote exports by participating in international fairs. He said this move reflects the government’s concern to support the agricultural sector.
The minister said the launch of the world’s biggest showroom for dates and date products demonstrates Salehia’s resolve to introduce innovative marketing techniques in boosting the sale and export of Saudi produce.
In a separate interview, Abdulrahman Al-Jeraisy, president of the Riyadh Chamber of Commerce and Industry, said the Al-Salehia showroom was a good example of how dates, consumed over the centuries, could be promoted in today’s competitive environment through modern techniques.
