Saudi Arabia has made meal services a compulsory component of Umrah packages for pilgrims arriving from Egypt, India, Pakistan and Bangladesh.
The new requirement took effect on August 14, 2026, according to Ghazi Qutb, Chairman of the Hajj and Umrah Committee at the Madinah Chamber of Commerce.
Qutb said the measure requires travel programmes bringing pilgrims from the four countries to include catering arrangements in their Umrah packages. He explained that the implementation would be based largely on contracts between travel companies and licensed service providers.
Unlike the previous system, where pilgrims could purchase meals separately after arriving in Saudi Arabia, catering will now form part of the core Umrah package for pilgrims from the affected countries.
However, Qutb noted that the Ministry of Hajj and Umrah had not publicly provided full details on the countries covered, the minimum number of meals, meal specifications or a standard price for the service.
He said the policy is particularly important because Egypt, India, Pakistan and Bangladesh are among the countries that send large numbers of Umrah pilgrims to Madinah.
Qutb also called for the development of a “Madinah Catering Standard” featuring three service levels, clearly defined meal requirements and menus tailored to the nationalities of pilgrims.
According to him, such a system could help reduce food wastage, complaints and other challenges associated with catering.
He further proposed digital verification of meal deliveries, linking each service to individual pilgrims’ permits. The system, he said, could help prevent false catering claims and improve the management of surplus food.
Meanwhile, Saudi Arabia’s catering industry is projected to expand significantly in the coming years. Qutb said the market, currently valued at about SR28.2 billion, could grow by roughly 70 per cent to SR47.8 billion by 2030.
The sector currently comprises around 23,000 licensed companies and kitchens, including central, temporary, seasonal and permanent catering facilities.
Qutb also said Saudi Arabia’s food production value is expected to reach SR104 billion by 2029, with the sector growing at an annual rate of about 3.4 per cent.
The development comes amid a sharp increase in Umrah arrivals. Figures from the Ministry of Hajj and Umrah and the Guests of the Merciful Service Programme show that Umrah visa arrivals reached about 931,500 between June 1 and July 15, 2026, representing a 22.5 per cent increase compared with the same period last year.
Overall, the number of pilgrims arriving from outside Saudi Arabia exceeded 1.27 million during the period.
Pakistan recorded the highest number of pilgrims at about 200,000, followed by Indonesia with 170,000 and Iraq with 130,000.
About 75 per cent of international Umrah pilgrims entered Saudi Arabia by air, while the remaining 25 per cent arrived through land and sea ports.
The number of overseas Umrah pilgrims during the last Ramadan also exceeded 1.68 million, underscoring the growing demand for pilgrimage-related services in the Kingdom.
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