This year's apple season is abundant and generous, but as much as it brings fruit, it also carries challenges. An estimated production of around 200,000 tons raises questions about Lebanon's ability to absorb, market, and sell this crop in a timely manner. The local market alone does not consume this quantity, and while the export door is open, there are obstacles, and competition in foreign markets is strong. With rising costs of packaging, transportation, and refrigeration, farmers, traders, and exporters are worried about the fate of their season.

The Ministry of Agriculture is moving vigorously to save the season, with marketing campaigns in the media and on social media to encourage Lebanese people to embrace their apples and incorporate them into their dietary habits, alongside attempts to open new markets and expand exports to Egypt, Jordan, Iraq, and the Gulf, and find practical solutions for storage, refrigeration, and shipping costs. However, the success of the season is at stake, especially if fuel prices continue to rise, along with storage and export costs.

After three years of declining apple seasons due to climate and drought, this year's season has returned abundantly, somewhat resembling the 2019 season. Farmers confirm it is not an exceptional season, but it is promising. The opening of land routes for export and the opening of the Saudi market to Lebanese products has opened a glimmer of hope for selling part of the apple season.

Minister of Agriculture Dr. Nizar Al-Hani hopes to diversify exports and not limit them to one country, as was the case in 2019, when Egypt absorbed the bulk of Lebanese production. Today, the Ministry of Agriculture aims to distribute production among five or six countries, which means broader sales and better prices for the product and Lebanese farmers.

However, the minister is well aware that the biggest challenge facing the apple season today lies in the rising costs of diesel and gasoline, and thus the costs of transportation and refrigeration. He explains to "Nidaa Al-Watan" that it has been customary to sell apples gradually, where they are first stored in refrigerators, to be shipped successively from September and October until the end of the year, extending into January. However, this year's plan is moving towards trying to export as much as possible directly, without the need to store them in refrigerators, due to the significant increase in refrigeration costs, where the cost of one box reaches between 4 and 5 dollars, which is equivalent to a third of the price of the apples or perhaps more.

In this context, farmers complain that, between the cost of packaging in plastic boxes, wrapping with paper and ropes, and the costs of transportation and storage in refrigerators, the cost of each box of apples can reach 8 dollars, which is equivalent to its price, making the farmer's profit zero.

Fried Rahme, one of the apple farmers in Ainata, says that the farmer is the weakest link in a long chain extending from him to the trader, exporter, and refrigerator owner. Therefore, the state must support apple farmers first, by reducing production costs such as irrigation, fertilizers, medicines, and pesticides, protecting them from traders and brokers, supporting agricultural cooperatives in the regions, and addressing refrigeration costs specifically.

The fate of the farmer, in the end, is not linked to his ability to produce; our land is generous, as Rahme says, and the rain has been abundant this year. However, the apple crisis cannot be attributed to one party, and the entire marketing chain is concerned, and our fate is linked to the government's ability to sell the production to ensure the continuity of this sector, which has been suffering for several years, and to curb the greed of traders and refrigerator owners.

Export as a Glimmer of Hope

The consumption of the Lebanese market for apples, according to the Ministry of Agriculture's figures, does not exceed 80 to 100 tons daily, while exports have reached, at certain stages, about 2000 tons daily. Egypt ranked first, importing about 80% of Lebanese apples.

But to what extent can Lebanese apples rely on a single market? Hence, the current effort is to expand foreign markets. In this context, Minister Al-Hani confirms that he visited Iraq to discuss increasing apple exports to the Iraqi market, meeting with importers to address some problems between exporters and importers, the most important of which are logistical difficulties and financial transfers, which pose obstacles to facilitating the export process and the ability of Lebanese traders to collect their dues.

The minister also visited Jordan for this purpose and revealed to "Nidaa Al-Watan" a plan to visit Libya after its markets were opened to Lebanese apples.

Here, it is important to note a significant step taken by the shipping company CMA CGM, which reduced maritime transport prices to Libya in response to exporters' requests, enhancing the competitiveness of Lebanese production in foreign markets and making the private sector a support for the agricultural sector.

In his remarks, Minister Al-Hani added that he is set to visit the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia in mid-month. He concluded by mentioning his participation in an upcoming meeting in Spain with the Minister of Agriculture there, coinciding with Lebanon's participation in a major global apple exhibition ("Fruit Attraction" / "Fruit Logistica"), as part of efforts to enhance the presence of Lebanese agricultural production in international forums and secure the best export markets for it.

"From Our Land to Our Table"

The apple sector, then, needs effective "agricultural diplomacy." The challenge lies not only in production, as the minister confirms, but in our ability to market the crop, sell it in a timely manner, maintain its quality, and ensure market sustainability. Protecting the apple season is a shared responsibility between the state, farmers, traders, exporters, and refrigerator owners. "We thank God that this year's abundant apple season coincided with the opening of the land route and the opening of Saudi markets; had the same season occurred last year with the closure of markets, it would have been catastrophic for the farmer due to his inability to sell his production."

President Joseph Aoun has intervened, holding a meeting with the Minister of Agriculture to establish a mechanism for communication with Arab countries to facilitate the export of Lebanese agricultural products, especially apples and grapes. Meanwhile, Minister of Industry and Trade Joe Issa Khoury arrived at the council carrying a bag of Bcharre apples, distributing it to the journalists present, in a symbolic step to support farmers and promote the quality of local production, emphasizing the continuous planning to secure export markets for it.

The Minister of Agriculture launched a marketing campaign through the media and social media, along with influencers, to encourage the consumption of Lebanese apples, through an impactful promotional video, and personally sent a message to all of them inviting them to promote Lebanese apples and make them a daily presence on their pages and in their daily lives, as any post, picture, or video could make a real difference for a farmer, a family, and an entire village.

"Through Manufacturing, Seasons Last"

But the question remains: Are these measures sufficient to sell an abundant season and ensure sustainability for apple cultivation? Worldwide, agricultural products are no longer the only pillar relied upon in agriculture; food manufacturing is the optimal solution for disposing of surplus agricultural production.

In Lebanon, where the market does not consume all apple production and where exports remain weak, apple manufacturing and conversion into food products gain great importance. Instead of surplus turning into losses for the farmer, it can be transformed into food products with added value, capable of securing additional markets for the crop and generating additional income for both farmers and manufacturers, thus stimulating the economy.

Based on real experiences in apple manufacturing, "Nidaa Al-Watan" spoke with Mr. Eli Rizk, owner of a factory for producing apple chips, who explained that this sector is very important but not fully exploited. Manufacturing can dispose of more than 50% of apple production, but today it constitutes only about 10% of it.

When we talk about manufacturing, we do not only mean making jams or juices, but also new varieties that have not yet been exploited, which can be exported to European and American markets. Rizk reveals a range of manufactured apple products, including apple vinegar, apple wine, and even apple flour, which is highly sought after in Europe for making pastries, as it is lactose-free, in addition to apple chips that are used instead of regular chips, which are very healthy and crunchy, and various flavors can be added to them. All of these come to complement well-known products, such as apple molasses, compote, and baby food.

The field of food manufacturing from apples, then, is vast and open to export, as its products are desirable, and it helps farmers dispose of their production that is usually unsellable at retail due to shape and size defects.

Rizk explains that the price of apples designated for manufacturing is lower than the price of apples designated for sale, so farmers cannot be deprived of the profit from sales, but they can be supported by purchasing lower quality, so that no waste occurs in their production, thus increasing their profit and production.

It must be acknowledged today that apple farmers have modernized their production methods and are now planting varieties demanded in Western markets, such as "Granny" apples and American apples.

The experience of manufacturing apple chips, according to Rizk, was very successful and opened Gulf markets to this product. He states that the factory, which stopped due to events in the south, used to consume the entire production of a village's apples, and if it had continued, it would have needed the production of several villages.

Lebanon today needs agricultural and industrial integration to help it withstand the economic and security storm it is experiencing, as well as the region. However, the industrial sector also complains and faces challenges that are no less difficult than those faced by the agricultural sector. The Vice President of the Industrialists Association, Ziad Bakdash, previously expressed that diesel alone constitutes about 15 to 25% of the cost of food industries, and the rising costs of fuel and transportation pressure both the agricultural and industrial sectors together. The cost of operating factories raises product prices, making their competitiveness in Arab and European markets weak.

In conclusion, encouraging industries that rely on apples and others requires securing more stable security and financial conditions, and stability in energy and transportation prices, to provide real sustainability for both the agricultural and industrial sectors.