Dates from Qatari farms displayed at the festival. (Pic: Amna Pervaiz Rao / The Peninsula)
DOHA: Al Khalas dates have become best seller among the eight verities of dates produced in Qatar in the third edition of Local Dates Festival 2018. Eight of the most popular varieties of dates grown in Qatar are being sold at the festival at discounted prices including Al Khalas, Shishi, Khanizi, Barhi, Naibt Saif, Lulu, Raziz and Ghar. Local customers and expatriates representing different nationalities like Al Khalas dates the most.
Talking to The Peninsula, Bargash Al Naimi, General supervisor of agriculture department at Local Dates Festival said: “Yesterday all the stock of dates was sold out before time. Like previous years, this year too Local Dates Festival is a huge hit. Today is the second day of the festival and the shelves are going empty within few hours. This year customers are demanding Al Khalas dates. This year, 73 Qatari farms are participating in the festival.”
Due to weekend holiday yesterday, many visitors flocked the festival. They bought dates in large quantities from 73 stalls offering fresh dates at cheap prices such as Khalas and Shishi which are sold for QR8 per kilogramme and Khanizi which is available for QR6 per kg.
Bargash Al Naimi, General Supervisor of Agriculture Department, at the Local Dates Festival.
“I managed to sell more than 120 boxes of dates yesterday whereas today within two hours I have sold 60 boxes. The sales are very good as during summer season tourists also come to visit Doha and dates are the main source of attraction which helps us sell dates easily,” said Khan Sayed, a salesman at a stall of the festival.
Apart from fresh dates, some locally made date products are being sold at the festival such as fresh date shakes named Rutab.
Memo’s Factory has become another crowd puller at the festival. At its stall, the company offers fresh Rutab (a drink made from dates and butter milk) Laban and Rose Milk Rutab. Talking to The Peninsula, Hanaa Benzarmid, store manager of Memo’s Factory said: “We participate in the festival every year and we are looking forward towards big hit this year as well. This drink is specially made in summers, it is refreshing and the customers enjoy it a lot in this weather. Almost every day we find it hard to meet customers’ demand but we never disappoint customers and manage it.”
“We also produce sugar free products, sugar-free chocolate, low-fat pastries and using flax seeds and others healthy elements in our crackers and pastries,” she added.
The festival is aimed at introducing the public to various types of quality dates produced locally as well as helping farmers improve the quality of dates and increase their production. It has been established as an annual event for the exchange of technical expertise between farmers.
The Ministry of Municipality supports the owners of palm trees and date farms providing them necessary assistance to encourage them to adopt the most sophisticated methods in production and care of palm trees.
The festival is running until August 4, and it is open to the public from 4pm to 10pm every day.
