Agriculture in Qatar - Growth, Trends, COVID-19 Impact, and Forecasts (2022 - 2027)

Agriculture in Qatar - Growth, Trends, COVID-19 Impact, and Forecasts (2022 - 2027)

The Qatar agriculture market is projected to register a CAGR of 6.3% during the forecast period, 2021-2026.

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Qatar's agriculture market suffered from farm labor shortage during the harvesting and input supply crisis, which in turn, hampered the usual production of the country. The repeated lockdowns and shutdowns of processing units affected the supply chain and limited the export of produces to importing countries. Moreover, the lack of storage facilities led to increased loss of quality of the country's produces.

Qatar majorly meets its domestic cereal demand through imports. Brazil, the United States, India, and Australia are some of the major exporters of cereals to Qatar. The country is aiming for self-sufficiency in agricultural products by encouraging its farmers to adopt advanced farming techniques.

The increase in adoption of advanced farming technologies and conducive government policies supporting domestic crop production are some of the factors driving the market growth in the country.

Key Market TrendsIncrease in Adoption of High Technology Farming Practices

Qatar's climate is characterized by low rainfall and high temperature. Despite these challenges, the country has made tremendous efforts over the last few years by adopting sustainable and smart agriculture techniques such as hydroponics, smart irrigation, and aquaponics that have improved the optimum utilization of arable land and the quality of fruits and vegetables. Hydroponics, a predominant system used in vertical farming, is gaining popularity among Qatari farmers, especially to grow local fruits and vegetables using minimal water resources. The Ministry of Municipality and Environment (MME) is supporting local farms by helping them set up greenhouse farms that will protect the crops from adverse weather conditions. The number of greenhouse farms increased from 471.0 in 2016 to 919.0 in 2017. According to the General Authority of Statistics, Saudi Arabia, the area under greenhouse vegetable cultivation was 3,294.7 hectares in 2019. The presence of advanced farming techniques such as hydroponics is enabling the availability of fruits and vegetables all-year-round, thereby boosting Qatar's domestic production.

Rise in Demand for Organic Fruits and Vegetables

The appetite for local produce products is gaining attraction among Qatari consumers. Consumers perceive local produce to be of better quality and are aware of the low carbon footprint for local products, which include fruits and vegetables, compared to imported products. The blockade against Qatar by its neighboring countries such as Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, and Egypt has made the Qatari government overcome the challenges and make a conducive environment for farming using sustainable agriculture practices. The Ministry of Municipality and Environment (MME) has allocated lands for building large farms to increase the efficiency in the production of organic foods, including fruits and vegetables. Further, subsidies for water and irrigation are provided to boost organic production. With conducive policies supporting domestic organic farming, agriculture in Qatar is expected to grow during the forecast period.

Additional Benefits:

• The market estimate (ME) sheet in Excel format
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