MAYS IBRAHIM (ABU DHABI)
In the UAE, millions of date palms are trimmed each year, generating massive volumes of agricultural waste – particularly palm fronds.
Once used in traditional building methods, these fronds today often end up discarded or burned. Desert Board, a UAE-born startup, is on a mission to change that.
Its solution involves manufacturing high-strength wooden boards entirely from the fronds of the native date palm, transforming what was once agricultural waste into sustainable building materials.
“We’re making something from the UAE, in the UAE, for the UAE,” Kamal Farah, Director of Desert Board, told Aletihad in an interview on the sidelines of Make it in the Emirates.
This homegrown company’s 55,000sqm automated factory in Khalifa Industrial Zone Abu Dhabi (KIZAD) now produces enough board to fill sixteen 20ft shipping containers every day.
Their applications range from furniture and interior walls to full housing structures, according to Farah.
“We’re not just making boards. We’re proving that the UAE can lead in sustainable, bio-based manufacturing, without cutting down a single tree,” Farah said.
“Our boards are zero-formaldehyde, carbon-negative, and fully aligned with the UAE’s sustainability goals.”
The company’s production process follows circular economy and bio-economy principles whereby no trees are felled, habitats remain intact, and local agricultural byproducts find high-value use.
The palm fronds are repurposed through a bespoke, multi-stage process developed in-house over two decades, Farah said.
This involves pulping and pressing raw fronds in a three-storey, 25-metre-long press, then bonding them into boards that boast high screw-holding strength and fire resistance.
The company was founded by Farah’s father, Hatta Farah, and produced its first board in 2021 after years of research and custom machinery development.
Its future plans involve building more factories to expand operations across the UAE and potentially in Saudi Arabia to meet growing demand.