Organized by Saudi Arabia’s Royal Commission for AlUla, the 4th annual AlUla Date Festival themed "Taste our pride" has seen more than 415 tons sold in the first three weeks of auction.
The commission has an electronic date tracking system, through a QR code, which enables it to track the source, history, and features of the dates supplied to the auction. The use of technology is important to ensure transparency, quality control, and accountability in the supply chain of the dates sold.
Auctioneers may also access information about the products they purchase by reading the labeled barcode on the date packages using their smartphones; data includes the place of origin and any certificates such as organic farming and the Saudi date mark.
This is bound to improve accountability, and thus ensure that the dates are safe.
The festival aims to promote AlUla dates in local, regional and international markets, in line with AlUla Vision, which is consistent with the Kingdom Vision 2030, whose goal is to consolidate the kingdom's role as the largest source of dates globally.
