Down a dirt track off the Dubai-Al Ain Road, in one of the UAE’s greenest regions, you will find a sprawling farm that is home to some of the tastiest berry selections.
Bumblebees imported from Europe help to pollinate thousands of berry bushes at Al Foah Farm in Al Ain, with about 1,500 bees per hectare working furiously between the planting and harvesting months.
The farm, owned and operated by Elite Agro Holding, leads the local production of some of nature’s best superfoods including raspberries, blackberries, and strawberries.
Localisation is our unique selling point. You can’t get fresher than this
Ian Summerfield,
Elite Agro
But it also holds the title of being the only steading in the country growing blueberries.
“Berries are fascinating because they have such a short shelf life but have become super popular with consumers in recent years,” said Ian Summerfield, chief executive of Elite Agro.
“Localisation is our unique selling point. You can’t get fresher than this.
“We operate something called the triple two policy.
“Taking the berries from harvest to cool storage takes less than two hours, the berries are only touched by two hands; the picker and the consumer, and we store all our produce at 2°C to keep it fresh.”
Large greenhouses fitted with water-based cooling systems house thousands of plants and bushes where the berries are in full bloom throughout their given season.
Blueberries are usually harvested from January to May and raspberries and blackberries from October to April.
Twenty greenhouses dedicated to blueberry production cover a total area of 12 hectares, with an average of 5,400 blueberry plants per hectare.
Raspberry and blackberry production is smaller in scale, covering a total area of 1.8 hectares and 1.2 hectares, respectively.
The farm is home to four premium varieties of blueberries ― dazzle, eureka, eureka sunrise and first blush. The plants are brought in from a breeder in Australia called Mountain Blue Orchard.
In terms of taste profile, Mr Summerfield said the blueberries have a "sweet but sharp flavour, are larger in size than most and have a crunchy texture".
“We had to find berries that could cope with this climate but still give a great burst of flavour,” he said.
“In 2017 we signed an exclusivity deal with Mountain Blue Orchard as we found these varieties would be best for this market both for flavour, texture and size but also for the growing conditions we had.
“We are the largest and only blueberry growers in the UAE and we’re the only people allowed to grow these varieties of berries in the Middle East.”
Fruitful production annually
During harvest, the blueberries are picked three times a week by farmhands and reach retail shelves within 24 hours.
Depending on where you shop, a 500g punnet of Elite blueberries, can cost between Dh30 to Dh40.
Annually, the farm produces about 300 tonnes of blueberries, 70 tonnes of raspberries and 30 tonnes of blackberries across tens of hectares of greenhouse spaces.
Over the next few years, Mr Summerfield said the farm will expand its blueberry crop by 13 hectares, meaning by 2026 it will produce close to 700 tonnes of blueberries a year.
How do you grow the perfect blueberry?
Blueberries have very specific pH requirements, so the saplings are planted in coco peat, made from coconut husks, and perlite, a naturally occurring mineral.
A drip system, which distributes a combination of water and fertiliser, is used for each plant and it receives about 3.5 litres of water per day in the hot summer months and only one litre during the cooler winter season.
For pollination, each flower on the plant needs to be visited by a bee between 18-23 times in a season, and each plant has around 1,600 flowers.
To keep pests at bay, the farm also introduces insect predators to kill unwanted bugs as an alternative to using harmful and costly pesticides.
Mr Summerfield said the biggest pest is a tiny insect called thrip and they bring in beetles to kill them off.
Spread across 570 hectares of land, the farm also produces peppers, tomatoes, cucumbers and potatoes.
Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
- 600-seat auditorium
- Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
FROM%20THE%20ASHES
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Hamilton profile
Age 32
Country United Kingdom
Grands Prix entered 198
Pole positions 67
Wins 57
Podiums 110
Points 2,423
World Championships 3
Dubai Rugby Sevens
November 30-December 2, at The Sevens, Dubai
Gulf Under 19
Pool A – Abu Dhabi Harlequins, Jumeirah College Tigers, Dubai English Speaking School 1, Gems World Academy
Pool B – British School Al Khubairat, Bahrain Colts, Jumeirah College Lions, Dubai English Speaking School 2
Pool C - Dubai College A, Dubai Sharks, Jumeirah English Speaking School, Al Yasmina
Pool D – Dubai Exiles, Dubai Hurricanes, Al Ain Amblers, Deira International School
hall of shame
SUNDERLAND 2002-03
No one has ended a Premier League season quite like Sunderland. They lost each of their final 15 games, taking no points after January. They ended up with 19 in total, sacking managers Peter Reid and Howard Wilkinson and losing 3-1 to Charlton when they scored three own goals in eight minutes.
SUNDERLAND 2005-06
Until Derby came along, Sunderland’s total of 15 points was the Premier League’s record low. They made it until May and their final home game before winning at the Stadium of Light while they lost a joint record 29 of their 38 league games.
HUDDERSFIELD 2018-19
Joined Derby as the only team to be relegated in March. No striker scored until January, while only two players got more assists than goalkeeper Jonas Lossl. The mid-season appointment Jan Siewert was to end his time as Huddersfield manager with a 5.3 per cent win rate.
ASTON VILLA 2015-16
Perhaps the most inexplicably bad season, considering they signed Idrissa Gueye and Adama Traore and still only got 17 points. Villa won their first league game, but none of the next 19. They ended an abominable campaign by taking one point from the last 39 available.
FULHAM 2018-19
Terrible in different ways. Fulham’s total of 26 points is not among the lowest ever but they contrived to get relegated after spending over £100 million (Dh457m) in the transfer market. Much of it went on defenders but they only kept two clean sheets in their first 33 games.
LA LIGA: Sporting Gijon, 13 points in 1997-98.
BUNDESLIGA: Tasmania Berlin, 10 points in 1965-66
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
Mohammed bin Zayed Majlis
The Sky Is Pink
Director: Shonali Bose
Cast: Priyanka Chopra Jonas, Farhan Akhtar, Zaira Wasim, Rohit Saraf
Three stars
Infiniti QX80 specs
Engine: twin-turbocharged 3.5-liter V6
Power: 450hp
Torque: 700Nm
Price: From Dh450,000, Autograph model from Dh510,000
Available: Now
Specs
Engine: Dual-motor all-wheel-drive electric
Range: Up to 610km
Power: 905hp
Torque: 985Nm
Price: From Dh439,000
Available: Now
Volvo ES90 Specs
Engine: Electric single motor (96kW), twin motor (106kW) and twin motor performance (106kW)
Power: 333hp, 449hp, 680hp
Torque: 480Nm, 670Nm, 870Nm
On sale: Later in 2025 or early 2026, depending on region
Price: Exact regional pricing TBA
FIXTURES
Fixtures for Round 15 (all times UAE)
Friday
Inter Milan v AS Roma (11.45pm)
Saturday
Atalanta v Verona (6pm)
Udinese v Napoli (9pm)
Lazio v Juventus (11.45pm)
Sunday
Lecce v Genoa (3.30pm)
Sassuolo v Cagliari (6pm)
SPAL v Brescia (6pm)
Torino v Fiorentina (6pm)
Sampdoria v Parma (9pm)
Bologna v AC Milan (11.45pm)
The smuggler
Eldarir had arrived at JFK in January 2020 with three suitcases, containing goods he valued at $300, when he was directed to a search area.
Officers found 41 gold artefacts among the bags, including amulets from a funerary set which prepared the deceased for the afterlife.
Also found was a cartouche of a Ptolemaic king on a relief that was originally part of a royal building or temple.
The largest single group of items found in Eldarir’s cases were 400 shabtis, or figurines.
Khouli conviction
Khouli smuggled items into the US by making false declarations to customs about the country of origin and value of the items.
According to Immigration and Customs Enforcement, he provided “false provenances which stated that [two] Egyptian antiquities were part of a collection assembled by Khouli's father in Israel in the 1960s” when in fact “Khouli acquired the Egyptian antiquities from other dealers”.
He was sentenced to one year of probation, six months of home confinement and 200 hours of community service in 2012 after admitting buying and smuggling Egyptian antiquities, including coffins, funerary boats and limestone figures.
For sale
A number of other items said to come from the collection of Ezeldeen Taha Eldarir are currently or recently for sale.
Their provenance is described in near identical terms as the British Museum shabti: bought from Salahaddin Sirmali, "authenticated and appraised" by Hossen Rashed, then imported to the US in 1948.
- An Egyptian Mummy mask dating from 700BC-30BC, is on offer for £11,807 ($15,275) online by a seller in Mexico
- A coffin lid dating back to 664BC-332BC was offered for sale by a Colorado-based art dealer, with a starting price of $65,000
- A shabti that was on sale through a Chicago-based coin dealer, dating from 1567BC-1085BC, is up for $1,950
LILO & STITCH
Starring: Sydney Elizebeth Agudong, Maia Kealoha, Chris Sanders
Director: Dean Fleischer Camp
Rating: 4.5/5
What is an ETF?
An exchange traded fund is a type of investment fund that can be traded quickly and easily, just like stocks and shares. They come with no upfront costs aside from your brokerage's dealing charges and annual fees, which are far lower than on traditional mutual investment funds. Charges are as low as 0.03 per cent on one of the very cheapest (and most popular), Vanguard S&P 500 ETF, with the maximum around 0.75 per cent.
There is no fund manager deciding which stocks and other assets to invest in, instead they passively track their chosen index, country, region or commodity, regardless of whether it goes up or down.
The first ETF was launched as recently as 1993, but the sector boasted $5.78 billion in assets under management at the end of September as inflows hit record highs, according to the latest figures from ETFGI, a leading independent research and consultancy firm.
There are thousands to choose from, with the five largest providers BlackRock’s iShares, Vanguard, State Street Global Advisers, Deutsche Bank X-trackers and Invesco PowerShares.
While the best-known track major indices such as MSCI World, the S&P 500 and FTSE 100, you can also invest in specific countries or regions, large, medium or small companies, government bonds, gold, crude oil, cocoa, water, carbon, cattle, corn futures, currency shifts or even a stock market crash.
Mohammed bin Zayed Majlis
Profile
Co-founders of the company: Vilhelm Hedberg and Ravi Bhusari
Launch year: In 2016 ekar launched and signed an agreement with Etihad Airways in Abu Dhabi. In January 2017 ekar launched in Dubai in a partnership with the RTA.
Number of employees: Over 50
Financing stage: Series B currently being finalised
Investors: Series A - Audacia Capital
Sector of operation: Transport
Calls
Directed by: Fede Alvarez
Starring: Pedro Pascal, Karen Gillian, Aaron Taylor-Johnson
4/5
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Mane points for safe home colouring
- Natural and grey hair takes colour differently than chemically treated hair
- Taking hair from a dark to a light colour should involve a slow transition through warmer stages of colour
- When choosing a colour (especially a lighter tone), allow for a natural lift of warmth
- Most modern hair colours are technique-based, in that they require a confident hand and taught skills
- If you decide to be brave and go for it, seek professional advice and use a semi-permanent colour
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
Fixtures
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EWednesday%2C%20April%203%3C%2Fstrong%3E%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3EArsenal%20v%20Luton%20Town%2C%2010.30pm%20(UAE)%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3EManchester%20City%20v%20Aston%20Villa%2C%2011.15pm%20(UAE)%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EThursday%2C%20April%204%3C%2Fstrong%3E%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3ELiverpool%20v%20Sheffield%20United%2C%2010.30pm%20(UAE)%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
The years Ramadan fell in May
Stan%20Lee
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