Buycott Palestine: “Bringing You Fresh Medjool Dates Straight From Palestine”

By: Kadiatu Barrie and Sarah Del Angel

What started as just a visit from her uncle, ignited her passion for entrepreneurship. 

Sabrine Azraq is the Founder and Wala Al-Soofi is the Creative Director of Buycott Palestine, a business working with Palestinian farmers to bring fresh dates for Canadians to enjoy. 

Buycott Palestine is a social enterprise that supports trade with Palestinian businesses, organizations, artists, and institutions, supporting the ongoing Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions Movement (BDS).  

The reason why the business’s name is Buycott Palestine is that the word “BUYcott” is the opposite of a boycott, showing how they are in support of Palestine.

Azraq is currently a law student at the University of Birmingham. She is also the Legal Services Co-ordinator at the Canadian Council of Muslim Women (CCMW). 

Azraq’s parents came from Palestine and built a life in Canada. 

She has been involved in speaking up against violence against women, Islamophobia, and other forms of injustice. Four years ago, her uncle brought over some Medjool dates from Palestine. She was in awe of how great they tasted.

“When I got that box of dates, everything connected,” she said. 

“I started ordering boxes and Alhamdullilah, our community and the communities we come from are just amazing.”

Azraq saw that there was a lack of Palestinian dates in Canada and knew that there was a supply for it back in Palestine. She decided to take a leap of faith and start a business that has sold hundreds of boxes to customers across Canada.

Wala Al-Soofi joined the business in November 2020. She is now the Social Media Director. 

Al-Soofi was born in Jordan and has always wanted to be involved in Palestinian industries. Despite the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, she was able to find out about the Buycott Palestine business.

She has been working with Azraq to find different ways to reach out to people on social media and their website, producing engaging content for folks to enjoy and have an understanding of what business is about. 
Because of the global pandemic, Azraq and Al-Soofi have never met in person, but their relationship seems as if they have known each other for a while. 

“She just came like a bowling ball and killed it”, said Azraq.

“She helped me gain my confidence and has been a great support system,” says Al-Soofi.
Buycott Palestine is a business led by Muslim women, created to support and invest in Palestinian industries by also providing an opportunity for folks back in Palestine to be compensated. 

Partnering up with several organizations, Palestinian Medjool dates are now being shared throughout Canada. Currently, they are working with Project Ramadan where for every date box sold, a portion of the proceeds will be going towards helping families facing food insecurities in Canada.

Buycott Palestine is a business that not only helps and supports farmers, businesses, and people in Palestine, but also provides fresh dates to Canadians as well as partnering up with different organizations, donating hundreds to those who are less fortunate. 

They have partnerships with Islamic Relief Canada, International Development and Relief Foundation (IDRF), Islamic Centre of Markham (masjid Darul Iman), and Human Concern International. 

According to their website, their current project consists of working with Palestinian farmers in Jericho and the valley areas to bring Class A Medjool dates from Palestine to Turtle Island.

“We want to continue finding good quality products and bring them here,” said Azraq. “The goal is to make Palestinian Medjool dates a household product, Inshallah!” 
“Our dates are also never stored,” said Al-Soofi. “They literally just arrived from Palestine.”

When faced with backlash about being too political, Azraq says, “Why should we change our narrative to fit western ideals? We don't need to minimize our stories to fit a North American perspective.”

“We know where we stand and what our intentions are,” says Al-Soofi. “If we as Muslims don’t support each other, then who’s going to support us?”

“We did a shipment back in February and we thought that was it, but the love and community is a force, meeting and connecting with new people. The people provide a sense of hope and optimism, pushing us to move forward.”

Through working together, Azraq and Al-Soofi built a relationship that goes beyond business partners.

“We’re sisters now,” says Azraq.

Al-Soofi says, “She made Buycott Palestine the way it is. Funny how we have never met in person, but Inshallah we will soon.”

Buycott Palestine is an example of Muslim women empowering each other.

“Like all businesses, we do face challenges, but when we support each other, we can do amazing things,” says Al-Soofi.

Fun Facts

According to Healthline Nutritionist Lauren Panoff’s article, “Compared with other common varieties like Deglet Noor, Medjool dates contain significantly more calcium.”

Significance of Dates in Islam

The word “date” is mentioned in the Holy Quran 20 times. It is a sacred fruit in Islam. The prophet (PBUM) also said that “dates are an excellent pre-fasting meal”. 

Benefits of Eating Dates

• Dates offer a significant amount of fibre

• A variety of vitamins & minerals including:

  • Potassium, B Vitamins, Copper & Magnesium

• Supports healthy digestions

• High in disease-fighting antioxidants