According to The Star, growing coffee bushes in Jizan, Saudi Arabia's southwestern area, is more than a job for Farah al-Malki. It's a family custom that's been passed down through the generations.
Coffee, which moved from Ethiopia to Yemen and then to the rest of the Middle East around the 15th century, has a lengthy relationship with the 90-year-old patriarch.
Coffee was moved from Ethiopia to Yemen and then to the rest of the Middle East around the 15th century. (Photo / Retrieved from Pixabay)
"I took over and passed it down to my sons and then to my grandchildren," al-Malki said to AFP as he watched his male relatives prune trees.
Jizan is noted for its red Khawlani coffee beans, which are sometimes combined with cardamom and saffron to produce a yellowish coffee – known locally as ghawa – with a distinct flavor from the bitter black liquid used everywhere in the Middle East and in the West.
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It is still ingrained in Saudi society, to the point where the government has declared 2022 "The Year of Saudi Coffee." Ghawa is a symbol of hospitality and charity that is served with dates in homes and royal palaces across the kingdom, breaking down societal barriers.
Despite his advanced age, al-Malki is still tending to the fields, dressed in a dark "chemise" shirt and ankle-length skirt known as a "wizrah," as well as a belt with a dagger. "The main problems we used to have were a shortage of water and assistance," al-Malki explained.
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However, in January, the government launched a drive to promote its coffee, as part of the kingdom's ambition to diversify its economy away from oil and a social movement to change the country's ultra-conservative image and open up to visitors and investors. It urged all restaurants and cafes to refer to Arabic coffee as "Saudi coffee."
Saudi Aramco, the largely state-owned oil firm, has announced plans to open a coffee center in Jizan that will employ "modern irrigation techniques to boost agricultural capacity."
