The fragrance of Taif roses spreads across the city of Taif. The flowers, with their bright colors that cover heights and mountains, announce the annual Taif rose season, which begins with the start of spring in March and lasts for 45 days. The season attracts many rose lovers and perfume makers from Saudi Arabia and abroad who come to enjoy and take part in the activities of the "Taif Rose Festival", held annually during its harvest season to introduce the culture of roses and their various by-products. The festival is linked now to Taif, a city long famous for its roses. The Taif rose season does not entail holding celebrations and entertaining and cultural events alone; its impact is wider as it constitutes an important economic resource that contributes to supporting local businesses through the initiatives of the Sustainable Agricultural Rural Development Program, which provides investment opportunities that eventually boost the Taif rose industry and help increase the cultivation area of these flowers and that, in return, will increase their contribution to the GDP. The amount of investment in Taif roses in the Saudi market has reached more than SR64 million. Rose farms in the Sarawat Mountains in Taif Governorate harvest about 550 million roses annually. A basket at the Taif Rose Festival entered the Guinness World Records as the largest basket of roses in the world, containing 84,540,000 roses of 26 finest types. More than 910 farms of Taif roses are spread in Taif Governorate. About 70 rose factories and laboratories extract and manufacture more than 80 rose derivatives, mostly used for manufacturing perfume and body care products, and these enjoy wide popularity in the markets, making the Taif rose industry a significant factor that promotes the development of the local community, provides job and marketing opportunities, and empowers women in the region to work in the industrial field and develop productive skills. — SPA
