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Jeddah is now the home of the world’s largest food cluster: The Saudi Authority for Industrial Cities and Technology Zones (Modon) inaugurated Jeddah Food Cluster at an 11 mn sqm area in Jeddah’s second and third industrial cities, state news agency SPA reports. The food manufacturing hub contributes to all stages of the food value chain and uses advanced infrastructure to link manufacturers and service providers. It has also been certified by Guinness World Records as the world’s largest food cluster, Modon said.
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The project includes 124 operational factories with a combined SAR 4.4 bn in investments, with some 4 mn tons in annual output. These include 76 ready-made factories that comply with the standards of the Saudi Food and Drug Authority, a central laboratory to maintain food safety, and some 134k sqm of shared warehousing space for cold and dry storage, SPA said. The cluster’s components are linked through suppliers and infrastructure to support efficient and sustainable supply chains. The new cluster expects to attract an additional SAR 20 bn in investments within the next 10 years, while exporting SAR 8 bn worth of goods per year and contributing SAR 7 bn to GDP.
PLUS- Modon inked five agreements to improve operations at the newly-inaugurated cluster, with the accords targeting industrial growth, workforce development, and food safety, SPA reported separately. The agreements include:
- An agreement with Umm Al-Qura University and the National Industrial Academy to train and qualify national talent for industrial and mining sectors;
- An MoU with the Food Industries Institute to develop training programs to enhance skills in the food industries sector, localize jobs, and boost expertise within industrial cities, including the Jeddah Food Cluster;
- An MoU with the Inspection, Diagnostics and Laboratory Analysis Company (EDAC) to conduct quality control and food safety tests;
- An agreement with PIF-owned Halal Products Development to raise awareness on halal product standards, support investors with consulting and links to local manufacturers, and facilitate access to global markets.
- A strategic partnership with Kon Arabia to organize the Saudi Food Exhibition and Conference in April 2025 in Riyadh.
