Advancing Coffee Farms in the Jazan Region of Saudi Arabia

Dimitra and SUT establish a development program for coffee producers

4 min readNov 30, 2023

TORTOLA, BRITISH VIRGIN ISLANDS — Dimitra Incorporated, a leading blockchain-based enterprise systems for AgTech driving productive, intelligent, and inclusive farming, is working with The Saudi Sustainable Union Trading Company. SUT is an organization that provides innovative solutions to help develop agricultural businesses. Together, they are establishing a development program for Jazan Coffee producers.

Dimitra and SUT aim to promote the coffee industry within the country. By assisting in developing coffee farms in the Jazan region of Saudi Arabia, these farmers can further capitalize on their unique coffee heritage in Saudi Arabia.

Traditional Farming Methods

The tradition of cultivating coffee in the Jazan region has been passed down from generation to generation. Primarily, this has been achieved through non-formal educational methods such as practical training and observation. This type of knowledge transfer is common in agricultural practices. Skills and techniques are learned through hands-on experience and shared within communities. In Jazan, there are approximately 700 coffee farms. However, with dramatically altered natural cycles and weather patterns resulting from the growing climate crisis, farmers face many new problems regarding water and working resources.

Dimitra’s Connected Coffee Platform

The Jazan Coffee Cooperative (CCJ), a leading agricultural development institution and national expertise house in the agriculture sector, is using Dimitra’s Connected Coffee platform. The tailored platform provides straightforward, actionable insights to increase the quality and quantity of coffee yields, all sustainably and with longevity in mind. The platform also offers real-time track and trace capability throughout all levels of the supply chain, ensuring farmers’ produce is transparent and credible.

In addition to the advanced technology, the local SUT Agronomy team will provide support and training to the local farmers and workers in coffee cultivation. For example, the farmers will be receiving assistance on their techniques for planting, pruning, harvesting, and post-harvest processing. This ensures the production of premium-quality coffee beans. To summarize, Dimitra and SUT will help the farmers increase their yield and improve the overall quality of the coffee cherries.

Assisting 700 coffee farms

The project’s initial phase starts with 200 farms in 2023 and will reach 350 by the end of 2024. The project’s full scope is to implement the Dimitra Connected Coffee platform for 700 farms in 6 coffee provinces in the Jazan region that cultivate Arabica and Khawlani coffee beans.

Specifically, Dimitra’s Connected Coffee platform will help the farmers establish quality control measures. It will also assist with monitoring and maintaining the quality of coffee produced. Moreover, it will also encourage farmers to adhere to international quality standards. The app will also motivate farmers to consider obtaining certifications such as organic to enhance marketability.

Mr. Gibran Farhan Al-Maliki, pictured above, is one of the leading coffee growers in Jazan and a professional coffee agronomist. Mr. Gibran will join Dimitra with his son Ahmed Gibran Farhan Al-Maliki at the initial training phase. As many people call him, Uncle Gibran is one of the first in Jazan’s Al Dayer area to turn his love of coffee into a local business. Upon retiring from teaching in his remote mountaintop village of Al Qateel in 2007, he looked to revive his family’s farms at 1,500 meters (about 4,900 feet) above sea level.

Revolutionizing the coffee industry

Maged Elmontaser, Dimitra’s MENA regional Director, says, “The Jazan province is packed full of advantages. The six mountainous governorates have many investment opportunities, especially in agriculture and heritage sites. Exploring opportunities to integrate coffee farms into the Dimitra Connected Coffee platform will transform the coffee industry. In addition, it will revolutionize the history, cultivation, and brewing of Saudi Arabian coffee. They are leveraging knowledge exchange, access to markets, and improving the overall competitiveness of Saudi Arabian coffee”.

Today, Saudi Arabia continues to produce coffee and has been promoting its unique coffee culture and heritage. The country has been investing in modernizing its coffee industry, improving quality, and promoting its coffee brands to the international market. The initiative the region is showing to help its coffee farmers led to Dimitra and SUT working together.