Marketing volume transaction in Saudi Arabia, including marketing characteristics, volume, prices, marketing channels, and loss analysis, were considered as study objectives. Results of the research paper showed that the average annual activity in date marketing amounted to about 820.5 tons of date as a total transaction for an average dealer. This amount contains all date varieties in the major date production regions including Sukkari, Khalas, Segae, Barhi, Ajwa, and other date varieties. The average annual activity in date marketing for a wholesaler was amounted to about 611.40 tons of date as a total transaction from the different purchasing sources with an average price of about SR 13471.7/ ton. The average annual activity in date marketing for a retailer was amounted to about 308.70 tons of date as a total transaction from the different procurement sources with an average price of about SR 16095.90/ ton. Waste was one of the important key inductor to improve marketing efficiency in general. Al-Madinah Al-Munawara represented the highest date marketing waste out of date marketing purchasing (5.8 per cent). For all regions, the date marketing waste out of marketing purchasing was 4.6 per cent.

1. Marketing Volume Transaction Analysis of Dates in Saudi Arabia
IJAM
Marketing volume transaction analysis of dates in
Saudi Arabia
S.H. Alkahtani1*
, A. M. Al-Abdulkader2
, S.M. Ismaiel1
1*
King Saud University, Saudi Arabia.
2
King Abdulaziz City for Science and Technology, Riyadh 11451, Saudi Arabia.
*Corresponding author email: safark@ksu.edu.sa
Marketing volume transaction in Saudi Arabia, including marketing characteristics, volume,
prices, marketing channels, and loss analysis, were considered as study objectives. Results of
the research paper showed that the average annual activity in date marketing amounted to
about 820.5 tons of date as a total transaction for an average dealer. This amount contains all
date varieties in the major date production regions including Sukkari, Khalas, Segae, Barhi,
Ajwa, and other date varieties. The average annual activity in date marketing for a wholesaler
was amounted to about 611.40 tons of date as a total transaction from the different purchasing
sources with an average price of about SR 13471.7/ ton. The average annual activity in date
marketing for a retailer was amounted to about 308.70 tons of date as a total transaction from
the different procurement sources with an average price of about SR 16095.90/ ton. Waste was
one of the important key inductor to improve marketing efficiency in general. Al-Madinah Al-
Munawara represented the highest date marketing waste out of date marketing purchasing (5.8
per cent). For all regions, the date marketing waste out of marketing purchasing was 4.6 per
cent.
Key words: Marketing volume transaction, marketing channels, date loss.
INTRODUCTION
Dates has a special status in the economic structure of
Saudi Arabia. Saudi Arabia produces more than
450ofdates varieties from more than 25.1million date
palm trees (MOA, 2014). Known varieties and consumers
preference are different from one region to another and
from one consumer to another. Sukkariis the most
famous date variety in Al-Qassim region, Khalas is the
most famous date variety in Al-hasa region, while Ajwa is
the most famous date variety in Al-Madinah Al-Munawara
region.
The production of dates increased from about 350
thousand tons in 1980 to about 1.03 million tons in 2012,
with an increase equivalent to about three folds. This is of
course due to the increase in cultivated area of palm
trees from about 60, 4 thousand hectares in 1980 to
about 160 thousands hectares in 2012 with an increase
by more than two folds during the same period.
Accordingly, the productivity increased by about 16 per
cent, from 5.67 ton ha
-1
in 1980 to about 6.56 ton ha
-1
in
2012 which could be attributed, also, to the application of
the advanced technologies and practices in date farming
(FAO, 2014).
Date marketing outputs transaction passes through two
main marketing channels in Saudi Arabia, traditional
marketing channel from producer to consumer without
passing through date processing plants, and marketing
through date processing plants. Producers under
traditional marketing channel sell their produced dates
directly at the local markets and at neighboring markets
without sorting and grading, fumigation and washing, and
regularly, sold as fresh or dried dates. However, date
marketing through processing plants is characterized with
better quality than dates sold via traditional date
marketing channel, where the producers of dates in
International Journal of Agricultural Marketing
Vol. 3(1), pp. 102-110, February, 2016. © www.premierpublishers.org. ISSN: 2167-0470
Research Article

2. Marketing Volume Transaction Analysis of Dates in Saudi Arabia
Alkahtani et al. 102
production areas sell their production to date processing
plants located in their areas, according to the quality
specifications determined by the plants. The price of
dates is determined on the basis of date quality and
quantities displayed (Alkahtani el al, 2011; Alshuaibi,
2011).
Date manufacturing and processing are encouraged in
Saudi Arabia, to increasing the added value of date
production, to provide more job opportunities, to solve a
lot of the marketing problems faced by date producers, to
achieve a balance between supply and demand, and to
find a rewarding and stable prices for producers and
favorable prices for consumers.
Date prices are one of the key market signals to
producers, where a number of important decisions are
taken to invest in the date sector, as well as the
consumer decision is made in accordance to the
suitability of these prices to their livings. Date prices are
usually influenced by the prevailed market powers of
demand and supply (John,1991).
Marketing outputs refers to low dates producers share
from the price paid by the consumer at the same time
marketing margins absorb the largest share (Alkahtani
and Elfeel 2006; Alkahtani el al, 2007). Some farmers
attempt to perform marketing functions in order to convert
a portion of the intermediaries profits to their favor, yet, it
did not come to their desired benefits. Thus, This paper
aims to explore marketing output transaction in Saudi
Arabia, including marketing characteristics, volume,
prices, and date loss analysis.
METHODOLOGY
The data required for the research project was collected
through a questionnaire prepared to survey date
marketing units (DMU's)at the selected date market
places in Saudi Arabia, namely, Al-Madinah Al-
Munawara, Riyadh, Al-Qassim, and Al-hasa regions
(Study Areas). The questionnaire includes general and
specific information about marketing characteristics,
channels, volume, and loss. The qualitative analysis in
the research project includes measuring the mean, the
standard deviations, duplicates and percentages of the
major variables to identify personal and functional
characteristics of the study sample and responses to
questionnaire questions. The analysis of variance (One-
way ANOVA) was utilized to identify differences between
the responses of the respondents to assess the level of
significant differences when variables are composed of
three categories and more(Dickey and Fuller, 1979).
Another qualitative analysis included SCHEFFE Test to
validate differences if there are significant differences by
using analysis of variance. T-test was utilized to indicate
the differences between the responses of the
respondents, and to assess significant differences when
the variable is composed of two categories only (Engle el
al, 1987; Freedman, 2009).
RESULTS AND DISCUSSION
Marketing Characteristics
The study sample included 298 DMU’s. Table (1)
presents the basic characteristics of the study sample.
Table (1) showed that study areas representation in
sample study goes with the importance of date marketing
places all over Saudi Arabia, as 33.9 per cent of
interviewed DMU’s had been done in Al-Madinah Al-
Munawara which was considered the most important date
marketing region for Saudi dates and combines all types
of DMU’s (retailers, wholesalers, and exporters). The
study sample contains all trade types, where retailing
represents about 43 per cent of the total study sample.
Also, Al-Madinah Al-Munawara procures dates from all
varieties and locations all over Saudi Arabia for supplying
Saudi dates for national and international date
consumers. Most of the sampled DMU’s were specialized
only in date marketing (72.5 per cent). While most of non-
specialized DMU’s (about 87 per cent) practice
agricultural marketing activities. A very limited portion of
DMU’s were highly educated (about 8 per cent) while
more than 90 per cent of them are secondary educated
or lower.
Dates Importance in DMUs Activities
Table (2) illustrated the importance of dates in dealer’s
activities. The minimum dates volume to other
commercial activities for the sample is 15 ton while the
maximum was 100 ton. Years of experience ranged from
one year as minimum to 50 years as maximum, with an
average of 12 years. This indicated that the studysample
gives great confidence to the accuracy of the results, in
prospective of the decisions and plans to the
development of marketing efficiency. The importance of
dates activities as an annual income to DMU’s are
distributed from 10 per cent to 100 per cent
Marketing outputs
Dates Sources and Prices
Average annual activity in date marketing amounted to
about 820.5 tons of date as a total transaction for an
average DMU’s. This amount contains all date varieties
including Sukkari, Khalas, Segae, Barhi, Ajwa, and other
date varieties, respectively. The purchasing sources
contained owned date farms, direct purchase from other
date farms, buying through auction transaction and

3. Marketing Volume Transaction Analysis of Dates in Saudi Arabia
Int. J. Agric. Mark. 103
Table 1. Basic Characteristics of the Study Sample of Date Marketing Unites (DMU) in Saudi Arabia – 2012.
Variable Frequency Per cent
Study areas
Riyadh 75 25.2
Al-Madinah Al-Munawara 101 33.9
Al-hasa 49 16.4
Al-Qassim 73 24.5
Marketing Channels
Wholesaling 47 15.8
Retailing 129 43.3
Wholesaling and Retailing 106 35.6
Retailing and Exporting 3 1.0
Wholesaling, Retailing and Exporting 6 2.0
Undefined 7 2.3
Specialization in date marketing activities
Specialized 216 72.5
Non-Specialized 82 27.5
Other activities ( for non-specialized)
Agricultural Marketing Activity 71 86.59
Non-Agricultural Marketing Activity 11 13.41
Dealer background
Inherited business 116 38.6
Un-inherited business 182 61.1
Educational level of dealer
Lower than hi-school 150 50.3
Hi-school 120 40.3
Higher Education 24 8.1
Undefined 4 1.3
Scale of trade (ton)
Small scale <10 17.2
Medium scale 10- <50 41.9
Above medium scale 50 – <100 11.0
Large Scale 100 – 500 22.5
X-large Scale >500 7.4
Source: Study Sample, 2012.
contracting. Generally speaking those sources represent
respectively.
Average date purchasing prices amounted to about SR
17142/ton. The price varies according to date variety and
also according to purchasing sources, (Table 3).
Wholesaling Sources and Prices
The average annual activity in date marketing for a
wholesaler was amounted to about 611.40 tons of date
as a total transaction from the different purchasing
sources with an average price of about SR 13471.7/ ton
(Table 4). Owned farms represented the highest source
of dates marketing with around 216 ton. In terms of prices
prospective, contracting method represent the lowest
prices over all the different dates varieties (3277 SR/ton).
Contracting approach was the best procuring source, so
that; it is recommended to increase relying on this source
in order to improve marketing efficiency.
Retailing Sources and Prices
The average annual activity in date marketing for a
retailer was amounted to about 308.70 tons of date as a
total transaction from the different procurement sources
with an average price of about SR 16095.90/ ton (Table
5).
Impact of Explanatory Factors on Date Marketing
Outputs
Table (6) summarized descriptive analysis for the main

4. Marketing Volume Transaction Analysis of Dates in Saudi Arabia
Alkahtani et al. 104
Table 2. Descriptive Analysis of the Importance of Date in Date Marketing Unites (DMU) Activities in Saudi Arabia - 2012.
Variable Min. Max. AVR. SDV. C.V
Riyadh
Relative importance of dates in commercial activities (per cent) 40 100 93.7 15.2 16.2
Years of Experience (year) 1 50 11.9 10.4 87.8
Relative importance of dates in annual income (per cent) 15 100 76.9 23 30
Al-Madinah Al-Munawara
Relative importance of dates in commercial activities (per cent) 15 100 90.5 23 25.5
Years of Experience (year) 2 45 11.3 7.6 67.2
Relative importance of dates in annual income (per cent) 10 100 82.1 24.2 29.2
Al-hasa
Relative importance of dates in commercial activities (per cent) 40 100 88.5 17.3 19.5
Years of Experience (year) 5 35 13.9 7.3 52.9
Relative importance of dates in annual income (per cent) 30 100 76 18.1 23.8
Al-Qassim
Relative importance of dates in commercial activities (per cent) 60 100 94 10.3 10.9
Years of Experience (year) 1 30 12 5.9 49.3
Relative importance of dates in annual income (per cent) 40 100 82.1 15.2 18.5
All Study Areas
Relative importance of dates in commercial activities (per cent) 15 100 91.9 17.7 19.3
Years of Experience (year) 1 50 12 8 66.7
Relative importance of dates in annual income (per cent) 10 100 80 21.1 26.4
Source: Study Sample, 2012.
Table 3. Average Date Purchasing Sources and Prices for Selected Date Varieties in Saudi Arabia Per Dealer
All Sources*ContractingAuctionOther FarmsOwned FarmsDate
Variety
SR/tonTonSR/tontonSR/tonTonSR/tonTonSR/tonTon
17093.2130.79525.026.918282.923.320544.834.618324.145.9Sukkari
11312.3302.18060.051.713880.893.310556.8110.311563.946.8Khalas
13234.810114750.015.415596.415.710984.624.813133.345.1Segae
9429.541.811250.04.010155.76.410140.617.37714.3014.1Barhi
36173.2157.232000.050.051837.228.148000.09.831166.769.3Ajwa
11367.287.78548.45.513772.939.010415.216.89006.5026.4Other
17141.7820.516886.9153.519557.6205.813888.8213.618094.6247.6Total *
Source: Study Sample, 2012.
*quantity in total tons, prices in weighted average
date marketing outputs, including, quantities, prices, and
added values, followed by a spill out discussion on the
impact of some key factors affecting the date marketing
outputs, including, marketing channels, geographic factor
(study area), educational level of DMU, concentration of
date marketing, other activity besides date marketing,
and length of experience in date marketing.
Type of Marketing Channel
Table (7) showed that average date marketing margin
doesn’t show significant variation according to various
marketing channels. However date annual quantity
transaction show wide range of variations among various
marketing channel. Date marketing units which practice
wholesaling, retailing and exporting activities perform
significantly more quantity of transaction. It was clear
from the table that retailers (whether or not they practice
date wholesaling activity) usually purchase date with
significantly higher price level than wholesaler (whether
wholesaler export or retail date or not). This result
confirm the three main price level of date marketing
system, farm gate price, wholesale price and retail level.
Selling price showed the same pattern in differences

5. Marketing Volume Transaction Analysis of Dates in Saudi Arabia
Int. J. Agric. Mark. 105
Table 4. Wholesalers Date Purchasing Sources and Prices for thy Selected Date Varieties in Saudi Arabia
All SourcesContractingauctionOther FarmsOwned FarmDate Varity
SR/tonTonSR/tonTonSR/tonTonSR/tonTonSR/tonTon
17079.765.45625.0.514400.040.332800.010.613300.014.0Sukkari
7305.3262.93250.0100.310642.958.410250.041.38738.162.9Khalas
10599.261.89000.0.512861.111.79766.719.310285.730.3Segae
4770.231--5250.014.0--4375.017.0Barhi
32611.6108.5--41000.027.032000.020.029125.061.5Ajwa
10487.281.82442.01.58838.226.915500.023.08553.930.4Others
13471.7611.43277.7102.815539.0178.317123.7114.214681.2216.1Total
Source: Study Sample, 2012.
Table 5. Retailers Date Procurement Sources and Prices for the Selected Date Varieties in Saudi Arabia
All SourcesContractingMarket (auction)Other FarmsOwned FarmDate Varity
SR/tonTonSR/tontonSR/tonTonSR/tonTonSR/tonTon
16365.058.611750.014.519832.318.314300.021.427178.64.4Sukkari
11976.279.18000.05.014079.929.410590.931.912150.812.8Khalas
8338.554.810000.01.016927.710.15333.340.719666.73.0Segae
12011.919.517500.01.011250.05.111531.310.713333.32.7Barhi
39691.042.9--53622.211.470000.04.029500.027.5Ajwa
12430.753.88500.01.015681.318.510458.310.510937.523.8Other
16095.9308.710950.022.520554.392.811528.9119.219437.074.2Total
Source: Study Sample, 2012.
Table 6. Descriptive Analysis for Main Date Marketing Outputs (Quantity, Price, and Value Added).
Items No. Min Max AVG STD
Annual quantity of transaction (ton) 294 1 11000 141.11 677.41
Average purchasing price (SR/ton) 297 1500 90000 18685.77 13183.01
Average Selling price (SR/ton) 297 4100 120000 24131.65 15911.801
Average marketing margin
i
(SR/ton) 297 100 40000 5445.87 5304.93
*Significant at 0,05 significance level**Significant at 0,10 significance level
Source: Study Sample, 2012
among marketing channels (at a higher level of course)
as well as purchasing channel.
Geographic Factor
Table (8) showed that date price levels (purchasing price
and selling price) were significantly higher for Al-Qassim
than Riyadh and Al-hasa. These differences could be
explained by date variety variations, Sukkari variety
common in Al-Qassim.
Educational Level of DMUs
Higher education of DMU manger was accompanied with
significant higher quantity of transaction and higher
purchasing prices and selling prices (Table 9).
Concentration in date Marketing
Dealers who were concentrated in date marketing
purchase and sell dates at significantly higher prices than
others whom were not concentrated in date marketing
system. Annual quantity of transaction doesn’t show
significant differences among concentrated or non
concentrated dealers (Table 10).
Type of Other Activity Besides Date Marketing
Date dealers whom practice other commercial have
significantly higher quantity of transaction than dealers
whom practice agricultural activity. Also, they buy and sell
dates at a significantly higher prices (Table 11).

6. Marketing Volume Transaction Analysis of Dates in Saudi Arabia
Alkahtani et al. 106
Table 7. One Way Analysis of Variance Showing the Impact of Marketing Channels on Date Marketing Outputs in Saudi Arabia
Items Marketing Channels N Mean Std.
Deviation
F Sig. Interpretation
Annual quantity of
transaction (ton)
Wholesaling 47 113.6
B
170.5 20.79 0.000 Wholesaling, retailing, exporting
versus all
Retailing 128 56.0
B
138.7
Wholesaling,
retailing
106 101.6
B
174.2
Wholesaling,
retailing, exporting
9 1704.4
A
3517.5
Average purchasing
price (SR/ton)
Average Selling
price (SR/ton)
Wholesaling 47 11490.4
B
6122.5 10.19 0.000 Retailing And retailing and
wholesaling versus wholesaling
and wholesaling, retailing,
exporting
Retailing 129 22136.6
A
13967.2
Wholesaling,
retailing
106 18462.3
A
13292.3
Wholesaling,
retailing, exporting
9 8888.9
B
4839.8
Annual quantity
Average Selling
price (SR/ton)
Wholesaling 47 16576.6
B
9204.8 6.33 0.000 Retailing and wholesaling,
retailing versus wholesaling and
wholesaling, retailing, exportingRetailing 129 27458.1
A
16350.3
Wholesaling,
retailing
106 24036.8
A
16559.6
Wholesaling,
retailing, exporting
9 17166.7
B
15072.7
Average marketing
margin (SR/ton)
Wholesaling 47 5086.2 5158.1 0.96 0.414 -
Retailing 129 5321.5 4902.6
Wholesaling,
retailing
106 5574.5 5265.5
Wholesaling,
retailing, exporting
9 8277.8 11040.0
 Means followed with same letter do not differ significantly using Duncan’s test.
*Significant at 0,05 significance level**Significant at 0,10 significance level
Source: Study Sample, 2012.
Table 8. One Way Analysis of Variance Showing the Impact of the Considered Study Areas on Date Marketing Outputs in Saudi
Arabia
Items Study areas No. Mean Std. Deviation F Sig. Interpretation
Annual quantity of
transaction (ton)
Riyadh 74 132.1 258.2 1.42 0.237 -
Al-Madinah Al-
Munawara
98 148.1 302.3
Al-hasa 49 294.7 1571.4
Al-Qassim 73 37.8 58.7
Average purchasing price
(SR/ton}
Riyadh 74 15528.7
B
16849.6 4.73 0.003 Al-Qassim versus Riyadh
and Al-hasa
Al-Madinah Al-
Munawara
101 19144.1
AB
8287.9
Al-hasa 49 16193.9
B
11546.5

7. Marketing Volume Transaction Analysis of Dates in Saudi Arabia
Int. J. Agric. Mark. 107
Table 8. Cont.
Al-Qassim 73 22924.7
A
14469.2
Average Selling price
(SR/ton)
Riyadh 74 21655.4
B
22299.6 3.13 0.026 Al-Qassim versus Riyadh
and Al-hasa
Al-Madinah Al-
Munawara
101 24573.3
AB
9633.3
Al-hasa 49 20718.4
B
13185.4
Al-Qassim 73 28321.9
A
16111.9
Average marketing margin
(SR/ton)
Riyadh 74 6126.7
(39.5 per
cent)
7348.5 0.90 0.441 -
Al-Madinah Al-
Munawara
101 5429.2
(28.4 per
cent)
5927.9
Al-hasa 49 4524.5
(27.9 per
cent)
2590.0
Al-Qassim 73 5397.3
(23.5 per
cent)
2571.2
 Means followed with same letter do not differ significantly using Duncan’s test.
*Significant at 0,05 significance level**Significant at 0,10 significance level
Source: Study Sample, 2012.
Table 9. One Way Analysis of Variance Showing the Impact of Dealer Educational Level on Date Marketing Outputs in Saudi Arabia
Items Educational level N Mean Std.
Deviation
F Sig.
Annual quantity of
transaction (ton)
Lower than
secondary
education
149 99.0
B
158.5 10.25 0.000 Higher education versus
lower than secondary
education and secondary
educationSecondary
education
117 78.9
B
196.0
Higher education 24 727.3
A
2257.8
Average
purchasing price
(SR/ton)
Lower than
secondary
education
150 15811.2
B
10134.3 6.53 0.002 Higher education versus
lower than secondary
education
Secondary
education
119 20970.6
AB
14962.7
Higher education 24 22187.5
A
15708.5
Average Selling
price (SR/ton)
Lower than
secondary
education
150 20834.0
B
12348.5 6.10 0.003 Higher education versus
lower than secondary
education
Secondary
education
119 26668.1
AB
18151.9
Higher education 24 28979.2
A
19000.1
Average marketing
margin (SR/ton)
Lower than
secondary
education
150 5022.8 5195.2 1.37 0.255 -
Secondary
education
119 5697.5 5224.3
Higher education 24 6791.7 6537.8
Means followed with same letter do not differ significantly using Duncan’s test
*Significant at 0,05 significance level* *Significant at 0,10 significance level
Source: Study Sample, 2012.

8. Marketing Volume Transaction Analysis of Dates in Saudi Arabia
Alkahtani et al. 108
Table 10. One Way Analysis of Variance Showing the Impact of Concentration in Date Marketing on Date Marketing Outputs in Saudi Arabia
Items N Mean Std. Deviation T Sig.
Annual quantity of transaction (ton) Yes 79 119.8 241.8 -0.33 0.744
No 215 149.0 778.9
Average purchasing price (SR/ton) Yes 82 21531.1 14285.5 2.31* 0.021
No 215 17600.6 12603.8
Average Selling price (SR/ton) Yes 82 27178.0 16339.8 2.05* 0.041
No 215 22969.8 15627.9
Average marketing margin (SR/ton) Yes 82 5647.0 4958.3 0.40 0.687
No 215 5369.2 5440.5
*Significant at 0,05 significance level**Significant at 0,10 significance level
Source: Study Sample, 2012.
Table 11. One Way Analysis of Variance Showing the Impact of Type of Activity besides Date Marketing on Date Marketing Outputs in Saudi
Arabia
Items Type N Mean Std. Deviation T Sig.
Annual quantity of transaction (ton) Agricultural 68 95.5 191.0 -2.27* 0.026
Commercial 11 269.5 427.7
Average purchasing price (SR/ton} Agricultural 71 20247.2 12592.6 -2.11* 0.038
Commercial 11 29818.2 21348.6
Average Selling price (SR/ton) Agricultural 71 25922.5 14698.8 -1.99* 0.047
Commercial 11 35281.8 23807.4
Average marketing margin (SR/ton) Agricultural 71 5675.4 5219.9 0.13 0.896
Commercial 11 5463.6 2892.2
*Significant at 0,05 significance level* *Significant at 0,10 significance level
Source: Study Sample, 2012.
 Length of Experience in Date Marketing
Table (12) showed the significant correlation between
length of experience in date marketing and average
purchasing and selling prices of dates in Saudi Arabia.
- Date Waste (loss)
Waste was one of the important key indicator to improve
marketing efficiency in general. Al-Madinah Al-Munawara
represented the highest date marketing waste out of date
marketing purchase (5.8 per cent). For all regions, the
date marketing waste out of date marketing purchase
was 4.6 per cent with an average price equivalent to
about 1775.6 SR/ton.
CONCLUSION
This paper aims to explore marketing output transaction
in Saudi Arabia, including marketing characteristics,
volume, prices, marketing channels, and loss analysis .
Results of the research paper showed that the average
annual activity in date marketing amounted to about
820.5 tons of date as a total transaction for an average
dealer. This amount contains all date varieties in the
major date production regions including Sukkari, Khalas,
Segae, Barhi, Ajwa, and other date varieties. The
procurement sources were categorized into four sources:
owned date farms, direct purchase from other date farms,
buying through auction transaction and contracting. The
average annual activity in date marketing for a wholesaler
is amounted to about 611.40 tons of date as a total
transaction from the different purchasing sources with an
average price of about SR 13471.7/ ton. The average
annual activity in date marketing for a retailer is
amounted to about 308.70 tons of date as a total
transaction from the different procurement sources with
an average price of about SR 16095.90/ ton.
Average date purchasing prices amounted to about SR
17142/ton. The price varies according to date variety and

9. Marketing Volume Transaction Analysis of Dates in Saudi Arabia
Int. J. Agric. Mark. 109
Table 12. Correlation between Length of Experience in Date Marketing and Date Marketing Outputs in Saudi Arabia
*Significant at 0,05 significance level**Significant at 0,10 significance level
Source: Study Sample, 2012.
Table 13. Average Date Waste out of Purchasing and its Prices at Different Study Areas in Saudi Arabia
Study Areas Unit Min Max Weighted. AVG St. d C.V
Riyadh per cent 1 40 3.9 5.6 135.6
SR/ton 100 10000 831.5 1499.2 163.6
Al-Madinah Al-Munawara per cent 1 14 5.8 2.2 62
SR/ton 100 6000 1338 1002 87.6
Al-hasa per cent 1 9 4.03 1.97 52.8
SR/ton 1000 9000 2888.5 2128 64
Al-Qassim per cent 1 7 2.7 1.9 56.5
SR/ton 500 8500 3229 2422 63
All regions per cent 1 40 4.6 3.5 93.5
SR/ton 100 10000 1775.6 2100.4 105.8
Source: Study Sample, 2012.
also according to procurement sources. Date selling
prices varies according to date varieties and marketing
channel. Ajwa recorded the highest average selling price
(55493.41 SR/ton). Sukkari and Segae come after Ajwa
(19028.41, 18923.01 SR/ton respectively) .Khalas and
Barhi are the cheapest dates sold by the dealers of the
sample (12336.81, 11427.73 SR/ton respectively). the
marketing margin varies among the study areas, with a
minimum of 4524.5 SR/ton in Al-hasa area (23.5 per
cent) to a maximum of about 6126.7 SR/ton in Riyadh
area (39.5 per cent).
Retailing prices were always higher than wholesaling
prices, However marketing spread and price mark up
varies according to date variety. These variations may be
explained by differences among varieties in the need for
marketing services in retailing stage. It was noticed that
specialized wholesalers are lower wholesale price
oriented, and specialized retailers were higher retail price
oriented. This result indicate that date retailing was
becoming more oriented to more marketing services,
such as high quality packaging, grading, sorting, storage.
Waste was one of the important key inductor to improve
marketing efficiency in general. Al-Madinah Al-Munawara
represented the highest date marketing waste out of date
marketing purchasing (5.8 per cent). For all regions, the
date marketing waste out of marketing purchasing was
4.6 per cent.
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
The project team is highly appreciated King Abdulaziz
City for Science and Technology (www.kacst.edu.sa) of
Saudi Arabia for its financial support and continues
encouragement to carry out this research project. This
research project is funded thru Strategic Technology
Program – the National Plan for Science, Technology,
and Innovation (http://nstip.kacst.edu.sa) grant # 600-32.
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Average purchasing price (SR/ton) R 0.24
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Average Selling price (SR/ton) R 0.14
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Accepted 26 January, 2016.
Citation: Alkahtani SH, Al-Abdulkader AM, Ismaiel SM
(2016). Marketing Volume Transaction Analysis of Dates
in Saudi Arabia. International Journal of Agricultural
Marketing, 3(1): 102-110.
Copyright: © 2016 Alkahtani et al. This is an open-
access article distributed under the terms of the Creative
Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted
use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium,
provided the original author and source are cited.
iMarketing margin is defined as the deference between prices paid by
producers and consumers which reflects the cost of the considered marketing
services for a product (Tomek and Robinson, 1985)