Elite Agro and AAAID signed a memorandum for a proposed 400-hectare farm in Sidi Yahya, with AED 140 million planned. The crop plan names blueberries, mandarins and avocados; construction and production remain unconfirmed.
AAAID representatives visited Sidi Yahya in May 2026 to discuss possible cooperation and investment. They also considered knowledge-sharing, alongside ways to raise productivity. On October 6, 2026, the UAE-based Elite Agro Holding and the Arab Authority for Agricultural Investment and Development signed a memorandum of understanding to develop a 400-hectare site, according to AAAID's announcement.
The memorandum is the only confirmed project milestone.
Elite Agro puts the planned investment at AED 140 million, equivalent to about US$38.1 million. Moroccan-dirham estimates for that amount vary with the exchange rate, so the AED figure is the clearest measure of the proposed commitment. The agreement covers development of the site. It does not confirm completed construction, an operating farm or a production start. The project information published so far gives no construction timetable, financing structure, ownership shares, expected harvest volumes or job numbers.
The proposed farm would grow blueberries and mandarins, as well as avocados, for Moroccan consumers and international markets. If it goes ahead, Sidi Yahya would be Elite Agro's eighth farm in Morocco. AAAID included the Moroccan project in a broader AED 580 million package of agricultural partnerships in Morocco and Mauritania. Elite Agro separately announced a regional investment portfolio of AED 660 million across the UAE and Morocco, with Mauritania also included, as reported by Zawya. The two totals cover different groupings. Neither represents the Sidi Yahya project's cost alone.
The plan builds on Elite Agro's existing operations in Morocco. In June 2026, its subsidiary Elite Harvest Maroc inaugurated a 200-hectare farm in Kénitra focused on blueberries and raspberries. At the time, the group said it operated seven farms in the country and had invested more than AED 500 million there. It described Morocco as its main berry-production hub.
Elite Harvest Maroc also grows pomegranates and apples across farms in Kénitra, Sidi Yahya, Fez and Béni Mellal. Its portfolio includes pears and peaches, alongside nectarines and grapes. The company also grows cherries and citrus fruits, as well as persimmons and plums. Adding mandarins and avocados would extend the mix with crops that have different water and climate requirements from berries. That could spread market exposure, but each crop brings its own growing and resource-management demands.
Morocco's proximity to Europe can shorten transit times for perishable fruit, while its logistics infrastructure supports export programmes. The trade figures cited in the supplied account show Moroccan fruit exports generated nearly MAD 18.9 billion (US$1.7 billion) in 2024. That was close to one-quarter of the MAD 81 billion (US$8.1 billion) total for food exports and the related beverage and tobacco categories. These national figures frame the market opportunity; they do not show how much the proposed farm might produce or export. MAP's coverage of Morocco's trade and agricultural economy offers a separate national view from company investment announcements.
Strawberries and raspberries accounted for about 38.5% of fruit export earnings, according to the figures cited in the supplied account. A broader category, covering fruit sold fresh or dried as well as frozen or preserved in brine, accounted for 36.5%. Citrus fruits represented 25.1%. The proposed farm would add mandarins and avocados to a sector already significant in Morocco's export mix. Agriculture also features in the country's investment profile, discussed in an earlier assessment.
For Elite Agro, the Sidi Yahya proposal would widen its crop mix and could extend its export window. The company has signed a memorandum, but the published project information does not give a construction timetable or a production start date.
