Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund (PIF) has joined forces with AeroFarms, a US-based vertical farming firm, to create a joint venture to construct and manage indoor vertical farms in Saudi Arabia and the larger Middle East and North Africa region.
Through indoor vertical farming, which requires no arable land and consumes 95 percent less water than conventional field farming, the agreement intends to maximise the use of natural resources.
“The agreement with AeroFarms will lead to the establishment of indoor vertical farms in Saudi Arabia and the wider MENA region, increasing regional reliance on locally produced, high-quality crops grown in a sustainable way using the latest technologies,” said Majed AlAssaf, Head of Consumer Goods and Retail, MENA Investments Division at PIF.
“PIF is enabling the growth of the food and agriculture sector and localizing technology that can benefit private sector industry participants.”
The collaboration will enable year-round, sustainable, local crop sourcing using the AgTech platform of AeroFarms. The partnership will also see the two organisations work together to construct various farms in the area, with the first one being built in Saudi Arabia. It will be the largest farm of its sort in the area and have a 1.1 million kg crop capacity, according to the Saudi Press Agency.
The partnership aligns with PIF’s strategy, which focuses on developing and enabling the capabilities of key sectors, including food and agriculture, which will contribute to improving trade balance, localise technologies, develop industries and the overall growth and diversification of the Saudi economy.
Saudi Arabia’s PIF is investing to localise new agricultural technologies that can benefit the local private sector, expanding its market reach and positioning the Kingdom as a leader in vertical farming.
