KUWAIT: Braving the hot afternoon and humid air at the date market in the Shuwaikh industrial area, 70-year-old Abu Saleh leaned on his stick as he got out of his car, accompanied by his driver. He walked into one of the date shops. With many years of experience, Abu Saleh bought his favorite date ‘Burhi’. He sat inside one of the shops and extended his hand to medium-sized grains, half of which have a yellowish-golden color in the upper half, and the other is moisturized.

He ate some of them as he drank a rich cardamom-flavored Nibari Arabic coffee. "This is good and excellent," he said as he turned to the seller. At the beginning of August, especially when the star (Suhail) approaches, one can see Burhi moths hanging on the sides of the palms like cheerful yellow chandeliers. The land of Kuwait is characterized by the production of the finest types of Burhi in the region, and the date market is witnessing a remarkable recovery in its unusual movement as the Kuwaiti Burhi moisture breaks into the markets.

In the market, you can find trays of Kuwaiti Al-Burhi inside the shops, and this fruit occupies a great place among the people of Kuwait and is indisputably one of the finest types in the Arabian Gulf, both for farmers and consumers due to the quality of the fruit. Agricultural engineer Abu Nasser Al-Dosari told the Kuwaiti news agency (KUNA) that people are always keen to buy it, especially the Kuwaiti Burhi, which is considered the best and finest. Al-Dosari added that there are different varieties of date fruits, but the most important of them are grown in Kuwait.

At the beginning of the season, we were importing dates (from Saudi Arabia) such as Al-Ikhlas, Rotana Al-Medina, Al-Sukari, and others, but now Kuwait is producing good-quality dates from Al-Wafra and Abdali farms. He pointed out that Kuwait is characterized by a variety of date palms, although the most famous is Burhi.

Others include sa’maran, halawi, Al-Khalas, saif plant, Al-Sukari, and pishi, among others. He explained that the ripening period begins in August and ends in mid-September. Kuwaiti farmers are distinguished in date palm cultivation and production. Burhi Palm needs a wide area of land, and the ripening and harvesting process takes place during July, August, and September every year. - KUNA