Tuesday, November 28, 2006


Cloned Wheat Gene Boosts Nutrition


Tuesday, 28 November 2006
Reuters

Scientists have cloned a gene from wild wheat that they hope could boost the nutritional value of bread and pasta and help fight world hunger, the US Department of Agriculture said. Researchers at the University of California-Davis and the University of Haifa in Israel cloned the gene, GPC-B1, which increases grain protein, zinc and iron content.
The project was funded by the Agriculture Department and a bilateral US-Israeli research fund, USDA said in a statement.
“As a major crop across the globe, providing 20 percent of all calories consumed by humans, any improvement in the nutritional value of wheat would have substantial health benefits for much of the world’s population,” Gale Buchanan, USDA’s undersecretary for research, education and economics, said in a statement.
GPC-B1 increases grain protein and micronutrient content by up to 15 percent in some wheat varieties, USDA said. The hope is that pasta and bread made from wheat with a functional copy of the gene would be more healthy.
The research was partially funded by USDA’s Cooperative State Research, Education and Extension Service.
http://www.saudigazette.com.sa/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=20548&Itemid=118

Saturday, November 18, 2006

Golden Grass, Inc. Awards/Citations
18 November 2006


Arab News Top 100 Supplement
Saudi Arabia


Golden Grass,Inc. The top 100 Saudi Companies 2001 Rank no. 100

Golden Grass, Inc.The top 100 Saudi Companies 2001 Rank no. 96

Golden Grass, Inc. The top 100 Saudi Companies 1995 Rank no. 95



Search Magazine
Saudi Arabia, The Gulf and The Middle East


Golden Grass, Inc. has been listed among its top 100 Saudi Corporations for the year 1997.

Golden Grass, Inc. has been listed among its top 100 Saudi Exporting Corporations for the year 1996.

Golden Grass, Inc. has been listed among its top 100 Saudi non-oil exporting corporations supplement for the year 1995.



Al Hayat Newspaper
Saudi Arabia


Golden Grass, Inc. has been listed as one of The top 150 companies in Saudi Arabia for the year 1999


Top 1000 Saudi Companies
International Information & Trading Services Co.
Saudi Arabia


Golden Grass, Inc. Top 1000 companies 7th edition 2003-2004 rank no. 247

Golden Grass, Inc. Top 1000 companies 5th edition 1997-1998 rank no. 208

Golden Grass, Inc. Top 1000 companies 4th edition 1995-1996 rank no. 208

Golden Grass, Inc. Top 1000 companies 3rd edition 1993 rank no. 233

Golden Grass, Inc. Top 1000 companies 2nd edition 1991-92 rank no. 394



Top Exporters and Importers Directory
Published by IIT
Saudi Arabia


Golden Grass, Inc. has been listed at the Top Exporters Section for the 1994-1995.

Thursday, November 16, 2006

Saudi farm to grow olives in Hail
Arab News 9 July 1999


Riyadh --- The Kingdom's policy to encourage crop diversification as part of its water conservation program is paying dividends, with a Saudi farm becoming the first in the Kingdom to grow olives at its facility in Hail.

We are also looking for a joint venture partner to go into the production of peanut butter, "Turki Faisal Al Rasheed, president of Golden Grass, Inc., told Arab News. He said their peanut farm at Hail is already producing 7,000 to 10,000 tons of peanut annually. Hence there is a good potential for peanut butter, which is currently being imported.

Asked about the olive production at his farm, Al Rasheed said the first crop of six tons is expected in three months. At present, Saudi Arabia is importing olives from Spain, Morocco and other Maghreb countries. Local production of olives could set the state for the extraction of olive oil in future. According to him, the Kingdom's crop diversification program owes its success largely to the government's encouragement and support in the form of subsidies which range from 50 percent of the official price on irrigation engines and pumps to 45 percent of the official price of farm machinery, 30 percent each of the total cost of poultry/dairy farms equipment, besides full cost of air transport (more than 50 cows per shipment), etc.
As a result, there has been a remarkable growth in the production of most categories of vegetables, fruits, meat, milk and eggs. Replying to a question on the payment of arrears to farmers, Al Rasheed said that some 38,000 people will benefit, with the latest installment of dues amounting to SR 3 billion payable by September 1998. A total of SR 18 billion has been paid to the farmers during the last three years, he observed.

Tuesday, November 14, 2006



Golden Grass succeeds in peanut cultivation
Saudi Commerce & Economic Review
January 1996


A Saudi company, Golden Grass, Inc., has successfully cultivated peanu (groundnut) in Saudi Arabia in its farm at Hail. This is the first successful experiment in peanut cultivation in the Middle East.

The local market demand for peanuts is 5,000 tonnes a year. The company plans to add value to its crop by manufacturing peanut butter. This plant is already built and is waiting for loan approval from the Saudi Industrial Development Fund (SIDF). It also plants to set up a facility for roasted, salted and blanched peanuts.

The company initially had a tough time marketing its crop in the Kingdom and ran into losses for two to three years. But today it has a 30 percent market share with its "Virginia" and "Runner" varieties. Major international buyers are from Australia, Europe, Jordan and theUAE. Negotiations are under way to export to the US and South Africa.

Monday, November 13, 2006


Kingdom promotes food productivity
Arab News 19 May 1990

Riyadh--- Minister of Industry and Electricity Abdulaziz Al-Zamil will inaugurate at the Saudi Consulting House tomorrow a seminar on boosting productivity of food industries in the Kingdom, it was announced here today.

It is the first time that a seminar of this type is being organized to promote the concept of productivity in the farm sector in conjunction with renowned consultants like Arthur D. Little International Inc., Booth Smith Associates an W.S. Atkins and Associates. Praising the idea behind the seminar, Turki Faisal Al Rasheed , told " Arab News" that it might be a good idea to consider transferring part of the wheat subsidies to other crops like maize, barley, corn, peanuts and soyabean where cultivation has to be undertaken with a low level of subsidies. He said that since the Kingdom was already production an extra three million tons of wheat, it made sense to whittle down wheat subsidies and divert the same to other crops which had become unrenumerative on this score.

Al Rasheed suggested that the Grain Silos Flour Mills Organizaion (GSFMO) of the Ministry of Commerce should set up a mechanism that allowed banks to endorse the promissory note. This, he said, would help solve credit flow problems for the farmers who now have to depend on their own resourcecs.

Sunday, November 12, 2006

SR 9billion payout to benefit farming, retail sectors
Arab News 27 August 1996

Riyadh—An estimated 40,000 Saudi farmers will start receiving the first installment of SR 9 billion from the branch offices of the Saudi Arabian Monetary Agency (SAMA) in the Kingdom starting from Aug. 31.

Giving this information to Arab News, Turki Faisal Al-Rasheed, president of Golden Grass, Inc., a Saudi agricultural firm, said the total amount of dues to the farmers –SR 9 billion—has been divided into three installments of SR 3 billion each, of which the first installment falls due on Aug. 31. The remaining two installments will be paid out on Sept. 1, 1997 and '98 respectively.

The farmers were distributed convertible promissory notes, or 'shahadah', last year indicating the date of encashment. Thanking the Saudi government for its gesture to the farmers, Al-Rasheed said it will go a long way in giving a much-needed boost to the farming community.

The impact of this cash infusion into the economy, he said, will be felt all the way from Wadi Dawasir in the Central province to Tabuk up north. "What this means is that each farmer will receive, on an average, SR 230,000. Such a sizeable cash infusion into the economy will have a multiplier effect. It will not only help the agricultural sector but also the retail sector, as it will give a new lift to their spending power. "He pointed out that it will also relieve pressure on the farmers, since each payment is preceded by the agricultural certificate promising payment on a due date." So instead of making direct payment, they could transfer the agricultural certificate to the suppliers of fertilizer, such as Sabic, or diesel oil, like petromin."

Al-Rasheed said the mode of payment adopted in the case of farmers could open new business opportunities for the private sector without building up the monetary pressure. "For instance, the contractors could receive promissory notes stating a fixed date for the payment of their dues. This will keep things moving while minimizing pressure on the government budget."

Referring to this future plans, Al-Rasheed said Golden Grass is in the process of setting up a peanut butter farm estimated to cost around SR 15 million at their facility in Hail. The Saudi Industrial Development Fund is studying their proposal and is expected to take an early decision on their loan application.
The proposed peanut butter plant is part of the firm's import substitution program. Currently, the Kingdom imports 2,500 tons of peanut annually. Since Golden Grass has its own peanut farm production of peanut butter is deemed to be a logical step in this direction. There is at present only one peanut butter plant in the Kingdom.

Sunday, November 05, 2006


Farmers welcome government decision on payments
Arab News 29 July 1999

Riyadh---Saudi farmers have welcomed the government's decision to release on Saturday dues amounting to over SR 773 million.

Turki Faisal Al-Rasheed, the president of Golden Grass, Inc. said that the payment of arrears for the agricultural season 1416H(1995-96) will stimulate the agricultural industry. His own farm at Hail produces olives, grapes, nectarines, apricots and plums. The company originally produce wheat.

The decision was taken in the light of the Kingdom's agricultural policy to encourage the production of crops that are not heavily dependent on water.