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.