Olive Cultivation Can Cut $4bn Oil Import Bill, UAF Told

Key Points

Experts say expanding olive cultivation can cut Pakistan’s $4 billion edible oil import bill and build a high-value export industry
UAF vice chancellor says the National Olive Value Chain Policy launched with Italy makes the olive sector a rare success story
Puglia accounts for around 50 per cent of Italy’s olive oil output, Italian expert shares high-density orchard experience
CIHEAM Bari’s scale-up project covers the full value chain from nursery management to marketing

FAISALABAD: Experts at an international workshop at the University of Agriculture Faisalabad on Friday said expanding olive cultivation could cut Pakistan’s $4 billion edible oil import bill and build a high-value export industry.

Pakistan spends $4 billion on edible oil imports despite being an agrarian country with fertile land, speakers at the workshop, titled “Olive: Health Utility, Nutrition Value and Sustainable Food Systems”, said.

The workshop was hosted by the Department of Physics in collaboration with the Olive Culture Scale-Up Project at the New Senate Hall and featured Prof Dr Alessandro Leone, Dr Francesco De Musso and Dr Muhammad Nouman of the CIHEAM Bari project.

Vice Chancellor Prof Dr Zulfiqar Ali said Pakistan had launched the National Olive Value Chain Policy in collaboration with Italy, describing the growing olive sector as a rare success story capable of transforming national agriculture.

He said olive cultivation held significant potential for nutritional security, diversification of agricultural production and sustainable food systems, adding that stronger research, better cultivation practices and technical expertise could help farmers explore the crop’s economic potential.

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Prof Dr Alessandro Leone of the University of Bari Aldo Moro, Italy, said the Puglia region accounted for around 50 per cent of Italy’s olive oil production, making Italy the second-largest producer globally.

He said Pakistan could benefit from Italian experience, including modern high-density orchard systems, to improve productivity and explore new opportunities in commercial cultivation.

Dr Francesco De Musso of CIHEAM Bari said the Olive Culture Scale-Up Project was laying the groundwork for a sustainable, climate-resilient and commercially competitive olive industry in Pakistan.

He said the project focused on farmers’ capacity, production and processing practices and quality standards, adopting a value-chain approach covering cultivation, nursery management, oil extraction, processing, packaging and marketing.

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Dean Faculty of Sciences Prof Dr Abdul Ghaffar stressed stronger collaboration between Pakistani and Italian institutions to advance olive research and build scientific capacity, saying Pakistan must move beyond conventional practices and use scientific research and modern technology for emerging high-value crops.

The workshop was coordinated by Dr Hafeez Anwar, Dr M. Yasir Javed and Zia ul Haq.