Saudi Arabia’s Medina is rich in date cultivation. Countless memories of Islamic history and heritage are woven into this holy city. In Medina’s soil, date farming has flourished for generations. Carrying centuries of tradition, its vast oases and palm groves yield many varieties of dates.
According to a report by Arab News, this city, holy to Muslims, has recorded the highest growth of any sector in agriculture. Over the past year, growth in the sector reached 44%.
A report by the Medina Chamber of Commerce and Industry said commercial registrations in the agricultural sector in the region stood at 375 in March 2025. By March 2026, that had risen to 540.
According to the report, Medina is Saudi Arabia’s third-largest date-producing region. It produces roughly 344,000 tonnes of dates a year, accounting for 18% of the country’s total date output.
Medina has more than 26,000 date farms, with more than 8 million date palms across them. Many varieties of dates are grown, a large share of which is supplied to the local market.
Every year, more than 41.5 million kilograms of dates are exported from the Medina region to more than 60 countries. Roughly 13% of Saudi Arabia’s total date exports come from this region.
According to the Saudi Press Agency, Medina has 39 date-processing factories. Among the country’s 161 regions, Medina ranks second in the number of date factories.
These factories produce roughly 1,067,000 tonnes of date-based products and byproducts each year. Of that, roughly 785,500 tonnes of dates are used for packaging and processing.
Date processing, packaging and export have become an important commercial activity in Medina. Alongside adding value to agricultural products, this is creating opportunities in the food-processing industry, investment and employment, while strengthening Saudi Arabia’s export sector.