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Gulf could provide lifeline for Palestinian olive farmers, say Oxfam and European Union

Palestinian olive oil producers in Dubai this week to tap into lucrative Gulf market

Dubai - Palestinian olive farmers, supported by the European Union and international development agency Oxfam, will for the first time this week be taking their oil to the annual Middle East Natural and Organic Product Exposition (MENOPE) at the Dubai International Exhibition and Convention Center. The event, which is organized by Global Links Dubai and takes place from 6-8 December, offers the farmers the opportunity to make key business ties to the Arab region.

The Palestinian olive oil to be showcased by the farmers meets international standards for extra virgin, Fair Trade and organic labeling and is already available in supermarkets and specialty stores across the UK and elsewhere in Europe. Looking to new markets, the Palestinian farmers are now hoping to sell their prized oil in the Gulf.

"The farmers we support are producing one of the highest quality olive oils in the world. Making a superior product is hard enough, but for Palestinian olive farmers the real challenge comes in getting that product to market," said Mohamad Sawafta, Oxfam Great Britain Livelihoods and Food Security Country Coordinator in Jerusalem. "The lives and livelihoods of thousands of Palestinians producing top quality olive oil and olive tapenade under occupation could be greatly improved if Gulf markets would open their doors to them."

With support from a three-year project funded by the EU and implemented by Oxfam, 31 olive farming co-operatives from the West Bank are finally seeing global potential in their oil. Through the project, "Promoting olive oil production and market access for small scale farmers," the cooperatives created the first Fair Trade certified olive oil in the world and are receiving hands-on support to market their oil abroad.

While they lack the climate to grow olives, the Gulf states are avid consumers of olive oil. Imports of olive oil to the Gulf exceed 13,000 tons annually.

Until now, Palestinian olive farmers have mostly been unable to supply oil widely to external markets due to access restrictions and the high costs of export imposed by the Israeli occupation. Farmers and cooperatives involved in the project say the Fair Trade model has given them the financial incentive to move beyond these barriers.

"The project put us in touch with ethical trading companies that have offered us fair prices for our oil," explained Yousif Taher, a Palestinian farmer participating in the MENOPE event. "This model has helped us to reinvest in ourselves and our land. We're thinking bigger now. We're developing business and marketing plans."

Taher, who is solely dependent on his income from olive farming, says that the project also introduced farmers to concepts of collective pressing, which allow farming co-operatives to press their olives fresh daily, resulting in a higher quality and lower acidity oil. Taher's co-operative, the Yabed Co-operative in the West Bank governorate of Jenin, recently produced olive oil with an acidity level of .03, far below the .8 percent standard for extra virgin certification.

"Through our work with the Palestinian olive farmers, we have witnessed remarkable achievements in the past few years. The Palestinian olive oil is Fair Trade certified, organically labeled, and we are increasingly seeing it in stores across Europe, " said EU Representative, Christian Berger. "Still, there is a lot to do in terms of marketing. Bringing Palestinian olive farmers to Dubai to participate in one of main regional food exhibitions, is part of the EU's efforts to help them access new markets."

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