The Ministry of Environment, Water and Agriculture (MEWA) has launched training programs on the application of Saudi Arabia Good Agricultural Practices (Saudi G.A.P) concurrently in Riyadh, Eastern Province, Makkah and Qassim.
MEWA pointed out that the three-phase training program provided to 350 Saudi citizens aims to train them as Saudi G.A.P specialists, and to qualify farmers to implement the Saudi G.A.P standards.
MEWA indicated that the most prominent of these standards are risk assessment, ensuring food safety at all stages of production, tracking agricultural products at each level of the supply chain, as well as providing an appropriate environment for agricultural workers, ensuring soil fertility and the safety of water used in agriculture, improving wildlife habitat, and maintaining biodiversity and ecological balance.
It is noteworthy that MEWA launched the Saudi G.A.P program last year with the aim of rationalizing water consumption in agricultural irrigation, encouraging farmers to grow high-value economic crops such as fruits and vegetables, and increasing agricultural, animal and fish production and improving products specifications. Farms that apply the Saudi G.A.P standards will receive a Saudi G.A.P certification for their agricultural products.