The World’s Biggest Producers of Dates

Dates are often eaten as the first thing to break fast when the sun sets each night in the Ramadan. The holy month is based on the Islamic lunar calendar and its start depends on when the crescent moon is first sighted.

In 2022, 9.91 million tonnes of dates were produced worldwide. According to data from the UN’s Food and Agriculture Organization, Egypt is the world’s biggest producer of dates, having grown around 1.73 million tonnes of the tropical fruit in 2022 alone. Saudi Arabia comes in second place with 1.61 million tonnes of dates, followed by Algeria with 1.25 million tonnes. As our chart shows, all of the top eight producing countries are in the Middle East and North Africa. Oman (0.38 million tonnes) and Tunisia (0.37 million tonnes) round off the top ten countries.

The small tropical fruits are considered a symbol of prosperity in the Arab world and are signs of hospitality across several cultures. One NPR article goes as far as to say that they are the fruit at the “cultural heart” of Oman, which ranks ninth on the list, noting that guests would often be offered a date on their arrival along with coffee and that they are traditionally also served at weddings and funerals.

In 2022, Israel was one of the leading exporters of dates worldwide. In the run up to Ramadan this year, there have been calls to boycott dates from Israel in a sign of Palestinian solidarity.