Jordan: Gov't awaiting Spanish company's response on olive oil deal
Posted by Zawya
Jordan Times
06 July 2010


AMMAN - The government has yet to receive a response from a private Spanish company that showed interest in cooperating with the Agriculture Ministry in marketing and developing the olive oil sector.

A delegation representing the company visited the country in May this year and expressed interest in marketing Jordanian olive oil internationally after preliminary tests showed that the Kingdom's oil is among the finest in the world.

The company asked to carry out additional tests on oil samples in their country, but these samples were confiscated by German authorities at the Frankfurt airport as the businessmen were heading back home, Agriculture Minister Saeed Masri told The Jordan Times on Monday.

According to international regulations, passengers are not allowed to carry bottles containing over 100ml of liquids on board aeroplanes in their carry-on luggage.

"We have sent another sample to the company via our embassy in Madrid and we are currently waiting for their response. This requires time and patience, but once a deal is agreed upon, the olive oil sector here will benefit tremendously from the company's vast experience," the minister said, expressing confidence that the test results would confirm the high quality of Jordan's olive oil and that a deal would be signed.

He underlined that in the initial phase of the agreement, once finalised, the company will buy between 800 and 1,000 tonnes of oil from last year's olive harvest, adding that in October, the company will discuss with the private sector opportunities for marketing this year's olive oil in Europe and other parts of the world.

Masri added that the challenge in this agreement will be the high production costs of Jordanian olive oil compared with EU products.

"Locally, the olive harvest is pressed once, while in Spain, for example, they have special techniques where they press and repress the same quantity three times, which cuts down production costs. We hope, by cooperating with this company, to transfer this technique into the local market in order to compete in prices at the international level," the minister added.

A total of 150,000 dunums already planted with olive trees will be included in the project, according to the minister, who noted that the venture is open to all farmers across the Kingdom

"These areas cover various parts in the Kingdom and are owned by thousands of farmers who will receive assistance from the company to adopt new techniques in order to enhance the product and meet European and international standards," Masri said.

He indicated that the company offered to provide farmers with technical assistance valued at more than 50 million euros to enhance productivity, noting that farmers, in return, will pay back the company by selling it a portion of their produce.

The minister added that farmers will also learn advanced irrigation methods, which will contribute to cutting down water consumption in addition to increasing productivity per dunum.

Olive oil production from the 2009 harvest season increased by 48 per cent to 16,760 tonnes from 11,292 tonnes in 2008, according to figures issued by the Department of Statistics (DoS) earlier this year.

The DoS report also showed that the Kingdom's total olive production increased by 30 per cent last year, reaching 135,000 tonnes compared with 94,000 tonnes in 2008. Of this volume, 69 per cent, or 92,000 tonnes, was used for extraction of oil.

Despite a 16 per cent drop in production, the northern Governorate of Irbid registered the highest production of olive oil last year with 3,429 tonnes, followed by Jerash and Ajloun with 2,656 and 2,576 tonnes respectively, the figures indicated.

Agriculture Ministry figures indicate that there are around 17 million olive trees in Jordan, generating an annual income of JD100 million with average exports worth JD20 million per year.

By Hani Hazaimeh

© Jordan Times 2010

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