Recycling: the why, how and where in Bahrain
Info page on the environment and recycling resources in Bahrain
INDEX
INDEX
Bahraini made and local grown products
Photo by: Abeer Abdullatif
Do you often see men beside the roads selling fresh fruits and vegetable?
Do you stop and check it out?
If you don’t yet do yourself a favor and next time you see one stop and have a look.
Most of what they sell unbelievable as it seems is grown right here on Bahraini soil.
Produce is seasonal and a really huge selection is available the whole year through.
I have tried to make a list of those that were present at the 2009 Riffa Views Farmers market. Below you'll find their numbers and what they sell.
Most of the farms have been in the family for generations, as an inherited profession the skills and interest have been handed down for many years.
An amazing array of products are locally grown and can be bought and collected from the farms.
(many fruits and vegetables are organically grown but always ask for the type of water used by them to make sure)
BUY LOCAL
BUY LOCAL
Dates (tam’r), Bahraini Almonds (looz), figs (teen), pomegranates (r’maan), bananas (moosa), lime , apples (t’faag), mangoes (manga), watermelon (jich), purslane (Birbeer), roquette, cucumber (khjar), tomatoes, leeks, Jejubas(knaar), dill, rhubarb, and much, much more.
By buying from local farmers you help conserve the environment.
Less co2 is produced by transporting it.
And it helps the local economy here too.
When going to the supermarket always choose either local or regional products.
Don’t forget to bring your re-usable bags that should be always ready in the back of your car.
MOHAMMED
Mohammed Mohsen Ali Abdulhussain
Helping out since he was a child he is a fulltime farmer now and on his farm he grows:
Dill, Parsley, Roquette, Purslane, spring onions leeks, tomatoes, and cucumbers.
Mobile: 39658326
ABBAS
ABBAS
Abbas Mohamed Ahmed Ali
Inherited his farm and enjoys life working alongside the workers on the farm.
He produces Cherry tomatoes, eggplants kidneybeans decorative tree and other Vegetables.
KNOW THE DIFFERENCE
KNOW THE DIFFERENCE
Flat leaf parsley (Bahdounes-arabic) can be mistaken for cilantro until you pick it up and smell it.
Its aroma is quite a bit stronger than that of curly parsley, sold without roots.
Cilantro or Coriander (Hasish-arabic) leaves are sold with root
SAYED
SAYED
Sayed Jawad Ali Ebrahim has been a farmer since the Age of 4, he produces radishes, onions, fenugreek, dill, leeks and Basil
Mobile: 39015429
EGGPLANTS
EGGPLANTS
Collection of eggplants
The long and slender green fruits are “Thai Long Green.
The sweet and tender, long lavender eggplants Ping Tung.
Listada De Gandia” are the purple and white stripped ones.
Three different purple eggplants including “Black Champion” “Gitana.” huge radiant green oval-shaped called “Green Giant
Local: September - February
JAFFAR
JAFFAR
Jaffar Mohamed Haidar also started farming as a child, working alongside his father who taught him all he knows.
NABEEL
NABEEL
Nabeel Al Ajimi started farming at the tender age of 6 with his father and grand-father at the family farm.
Even during his years studying and high school and university during his holidays he would be found working there as a hobby.
Now most his time is spend cross breeding a number of different types of fruit trees.
He sells trees like, Looz (Bahrain or Indian Almond) jujuba, berries, figs, apples, lemons and limes, hibiscus , neem, and vegetables including leek, parsley, radishes, dill, Roquette, and onions.
Mobile: 39446844
NEEM -Azadirachta indica
NEEM -Azadirachta indica
More info on Neem's health and beauty benefits on the download page.
Neem leaf powder is highly anti-bacterial, and the leaves have been used for centuries to make anti-bacterial washes and poultices.
Add Neem powder to cosmetic clays to make a face pack or body wrap that is suitable for acne prone skin.
Add Neem powder to salt scrubs for skin problems such as eczema and psoriasis.
Make a tea infusion with Neem powder, and use the infusion in a bath to treat chicken pox or oozing skin eruptions.
Use it in a gardener’s hand scrub with corn meal to provide anti-bacterial cleansing after working in the soil.
Neem powder works well as a hair oil treatment for scalp conditions.
Local produce
Local produce
QUICK CHART LOCAL PRODUCE
QUICK CHART LOCAL PRODUCE
FRUIT TREES AND HERBAL WATER
Abdulaziz & Ahmed Khalifa,
developed their love for farming at an early age through their father.
They took over the family farm after his death, to continue the production of fruit and vegetables he had produced.
They sell and plant trees and their products. Fruit trees, berries, Bahraini (Indian) almond, tamarind, Sappodilla (chico). Produce palm and herbal water and palm syrup.
Mobile: 39404191 / 39625487
GRASS FARMER
Ebhrahim Al Qaydoom started farming as a small child with his father. He started a grass planting project in2002.He is now of the leading grass farm in the area.
He not only sells grass, but provides grass planting service to suit your personal needs.
Mobile:39692610
FLOWERS
Sayed Faisal Jaffar Alawi was taught by his father all skills needed to begin his career. He plants and sells several types of flowers like Betony. Carnations, Petunias, Chrysanthemums, golden ficus and many, many others .just pass by to look at his nursery.
TRADITIONS - COFFEE AND TEA
In many cultures, especially the Arabian Gulf, serving, preparing and drinking tea and coffee remains the focal point during social gatherings of all kinds, derived from the Bedouin hospitality this remains unchanged, performing the same ceremony which has ruled for centuries.
Gahwa is considered an integral part of the traditional welcome in the Kingdom of Bahrain, and other Gulf Countries.
Several flavors of tea are served, including mint, lemon, ginger, saffron and cardamom tea. Some in red tea others in tea with milk, depending on occasion and season.
Traditionally the ritual of presenting gahwa begins when the host places a set of four coffee pots, called Della.
Next to an open fire he pours the coffee beans onto a mahmasa, which is held above the flames. He stirs the roasting beans and when the beans are cooked they are left to cool before being crushed with a pestle in a mortar called mahbash.
Water is poured into the second large pot which contains freshly ground coffee which is then boiled over fire. Now the host pounds the cardamom seeds, and sometimes a pinch of saffron, into the third della which is then filled with the freshly brewed coffee from the second pot and brought to boil again.
Finally the gahwa is poured into the fourth and smallest pot and served with utmost etiquette.
It is always the host's privilege to serve his guests, although a servant may assist by holding the tray of small, china cups without handles (finjan).
He may pour himself a small cup first in order to taste it, but strict rules of etiquette are observed in the serving order. When only men are present, the most important person in the room is served first.
Age takes precedence if there is some doubt as to rank. Until a few years ago men were always served before women, but today that custom is often reversed, particularly if Westerners are among the guests.
The cups are only half filled, but guests may have several refills. It is polite to accept an odd number of cups -- one, three or five.
When the guest has finished he should jiggle the empty cup from side to side, indicating to the host that he has had sufficient. To refuse the first round is considered not only bad manners but also an insult to the host.
Gahwa is never sweetened with sugar.
Fresh dates which contain 55% natural sugar, are offered as accompaniment to this heavenly brew, you either love it or hate it.
The proportions of coffee and cardamom in the recipe of gahwa vary considerably from region to region.
Gahwa is offered to you not only as refreshment but also shows that you are being welcomed by your host.
It is part of our Bahraini hospitality. One cup of gahwa will invite one more.
*****
Mr. Humood Saif Al Amiri started the fine art of preparing and serving coffee and tea as a child, working with his father, who had the honor of pouring coffee for late Shaikh Isa Bin Salman Al Khalifa, and before him Mr. Humood’s grandfather served Shaikh Salman Bin Hamad Al Khalifa, the father and grandfather of HH King Hamad Bin Isa Al Khalifa.
He was taught the etiquette and skills of pouring tea and coffee at VIP gatherings.
After his fathers dead Humood inherited his fathers serving tools and they are used for exhibitions and tours.
Mr. Humood has successfully represented Bahrain on several occasions abroad.
Mobile: 39664605 / 39225980 /17778396
DAIRY FROM THE FARM
Traditionally yogurt was produced in every Bahraini household by hanging milk in a pot wrapped with a towel or piece of cloth for a number of days, keeping it like so until it was ready to be eaten.
Laban (buttermilk) was likewise homemade by putting milk into a clay pot, shaking it until the sound of the milk changed which takes up to an hour or so.
Ali Abdulnabi Al Mawali helped breeding cattle since he was a child, and expanded over the years by producing yogurt and other dairy products.
Together with his 5 sons and 5 daughters he runs the family owned dairy factory.
Mobile: 39549337
LOCAL HONEY
Sayed Ahmed Alawi Makki lived in Kuwait because of the Iraqi war, where he with his family kept bees in their homes and around the farms and produced honey.
There he took a government workshop to enhance his skills, moved to Bahrain and now has his own bee farm and sells seasonal local honey.
The Egyptian bees seem to thrive in the Bahraini Climate, and he harvests the honey every three months by using smoke to calm down the bees.
Raw, unpasteurized (acacia and other seasonal) honey (very good to treat people with hayfever)
Mobile: 36624216 Email
DATE PALM SYRUP
DATE PALM SYRUP
Earlier generations obtained Dibs, this is the syrupy juice of dry dates, by placing dry date in sacks on top of each other in a small room called Dibsah.
It has a smooth cement floor ending in a channel. A heavy object (a large stone for instance) would be placed on the sacks, the weight resulting in the juices (Dibs) flowing into the channels, which in turn they would guide into a pot
The Dibsah is still used and after harvesting ripe date are washed and then dried for5 days in the sun. The syrup maker now used a stick and large mat to press the dates down, every day adding more layers , these layers can reach a height of 3 meters.
Haj Abdulla Isa AbdAli learned his trade on his grandfather’s farm. He bought his own farm and with his son Isa he produces the syrup from his farm’s daily gathered dates.
Mobile: 39651225
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