AMMAN — Representatives of Jordan’s industrial and
agricultural sectors stressed the importance of cooperate between the two
sectors to enhance national food security and realize mutual benefits.
اضافة اعلان
In statements to
the Jordan News Agency, Petra, stakeholders said that Jordan’s
food industries
have “remarkable” export potential.
The development
of the agricultural sector requires a proper environment for agri-industrial
integration, they said, both in terms of enhancing legislation and policies
related to the sector and providing incentives and farmer protection.
The
Jordan Chamber of Industry’s (JCI) representative for food, catering, agricultural,
and livestock industries, Mohammad Jitan, said agri-manufacturing aims to meet
the local market’s needs, support the sector to be self-sufficient, and
increase export volume due to the high global demand for the sector’s products.
National food
industries have “great” export potential to different global countries, he
noted.
Referring to
Royal directives, he said that the development of food industries is a “top”
priority to achieve national food security, stressing the importance of
supporting industries that use local production inputs, which have high added
value.
The transition to agri-industry requires a proper
environment for the integration of the two sectors and the implementation of
initiatives and investment within the food industry and security sectors as
outlined in the Kingdom’s
Economic Modernization Vision, he said.
JCI
representative for chemical and cosmetic industries Ahmed Al-Biss said that the
production value of Jordan’s existing food industries amounts to JD3.5 billion
annually. This sector and the Kingdom’s agricultural industries “need to be
reassessed”, he said, as the Kingdom’s various agricultural industries and its
vegetable production exceed the local market’s needs.
What is more,
the regional export map has changed, as countries that used to import Jordanian
products are developing their own production plans, leading at times to
production backlogs, he said.
Through an
evaluation of foreign imports, the sector can identify alternative local
agricultural industries and support manufacturing to meet the local market’s
needs, he said, highlighting Jordan’s potential to develop its productive
capacities.
Strategic plans
should also be launched to improve the productivity of Jordan’s agricultural
sector, as surplus agricultural produce can be used in manufactured products,
the representative said.
For example, the
Kingdom produces more than 150,000 tonnes of potatoes, where local consumption
is estimated at 100,000 tonnes. Biss called for manufacturing packaged potatoes
to replace imports, as well as producing tomato paste due to the availability
of large quantities of tomatoes.
Other
agricultural products can be used similarly in the industrial sector by
developing related production processes, especially in the dairy and cheese
industries, he said.
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