Domestic food production and consumption in Saudi Arabia: Status quo and future prospects

Nourished communities are recognized as having a productive and sustainable agricultural sector. The Saudi government has shown great concern for food production and availability, which is reflected in the Saudi Arabia Vision 2030 which focuses on both food availability and consumption. The overall objective of this chapter is to evaluate the current and potential status of domestic food production and consumption, as well as forecast patterns and changes in the future. In this chapter, time series secondary data and information gathered by the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) were used. The data covers crop and animal products from 1961 to 2021, as well as food supply information from 2010 to 2020. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics such as averages, graphs, and trend lines. The results revealed that 43% of the land is used for fruit cultivation, 38% for cereals, and 18% for vegetables. The passage of time has had a significant effect on cultivated land and cropping patterns, which have changed significantly due to issues with water and natural resources. While the land and production for cereal crops are decreasing, they are increasing for vegetables. The increase in vegetable production is higher than the increase in land, attributable to advanced production technologies and efficient resource usage. Food supply showed changes over time, with varying self-sufficiency rates for vegetable crops ranging from 4 to 118% and fruits from 60 to 118%. For animal products, it ranged between 43% for red meat and 121% for milk. We conclude that despite the unfavorable climate and natural resource constraints to food production, efforts have been made to enhance production and food security regarding food availability in Saudi Arabia.