AMMAN: Exports of fruits and vegetables increased by 6.7 per cent in April compared to the previous month, according to official figures, which indicate that the majority of the local produce was exported to the Gulf States. A total of 58,600 tonnes of fruits and vegetables were exported last month, Agriculture Minister Akef Zu’bi said in a statement e-mailed to The Jordan Times.
“Ninety per cent, or 53,000 tonnes, of the exported produce was vegetables and 10 per cent, or 5,600 tonnes, were fruits,” Zu’bi added. The minister noted that produce exports increased last month despite the closure of Jordan’s border with Syria. Agriculture Ministry Spokesperson Nimer Haddadin attributed the increase to rising demand from Gulf States. “The Gulf countries’ surging demand for local fruits and vegetables is partly making up for losses incurred by the closure of the border with Syria,” Haddadin told The Jordan Times.
