Friday, April 6, 2007

Bumper winter crop in Jordan

Farmers from Jordan's bread basket, the Ghor valley (200 m below sea level) are happy: due to late rainfall, this has been their best year in the past 10 years, and harvests are exceeding expectations. The relatively higher prices of produce in Jordan (see post below) mean that small (and large) farmers will actually make some extra money this year, which will allow them to repay their debts. I wonder: bumper yields in Jordan, at lower production cost than Lebanon; does this mean the Lebanese market will be flooded with Jordanian produce? Not if the agricultural calendar holds. But trust Minister of Trade Sami Haddad to find a way to remove the trade restrictions graciously offered by Jordan to protect the Lebanese farmers. All this to please the Market God.

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