Agricultural Development in the West Bank (ص 163)

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Agricultural Development in the West Bank (ص 163)

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Problems
by
1. Competition with Israeli beef and dairy products. This is by
far the most important factor responsible for the drastic
decline in West Bank cattle farming. Commercial Arab dairy
farms face inequitable competition with Israeli dairy products
which enjoy the benefits of scale and receive various forms of
subsidy. This problem is not as severe in the case of dairy
products made from sheep and goat milk because, as explained
earlier, they enjoy a marked degree of differentiation in
quality. Competition with Israeli beef, unlike that of mutton,
is very strong because Israel produces beef on a large scale
and at competitive prices.
2. High cost of feed. Unlike sheep and goats, cows cannot rely
heavily on natural grazing for their diet, because it is highly
inefficient to let them scavenge over wide areas for their daily
ration. so most of their feed consists of grains (barley and
vetch) and hay. Whether produced on the farm or purchased from
local markets, the current cost of feed is so high that it
Squeezes profits.
3. Shortage of easy credit. Dairy farming is a notable example
©f a technology and capital-intensive type of agriculture. In
™ost Loc countries credit is advanced to dairy enterprises at
concessional terms.*# The situation in the West Rank is quite
different. Credit for long-term investment purposes is rarely
available, even at ruling rates of interest,
4. Weak auxiliary services. This applies to the services rendered
Se
*
This is a public policy in such countries as Israel, Jordan,
was Syria, and practically all other countries of the Middle
St.
315
by the Department of Agriculture, Veterinary Service and
Cooperative institutions. This was described earlier in chapter
IV on Supportive Service Institutions.
Poultry
Poultry production developed on a commercial and intensive scale
in
about 1960, influenced largely by the Lebanese poultry expansion
Of the fifties and sixties. The West Bank's poultry industry
developed so rapidly that by 1966 there were 190 farms raising
about 3 million broilers per year and 32,000 commercial layers,
in Addition to more than half a million layers of indigenous
Strains.) the industry was served by five hatcheries and two
feedmills, all located in the Hast Bank. Credit facilities were
Provided at concessional terms by governmental institutions and
Suppliers of feed and chicks. The levels of technology and
Productivity were improving so rapidly that by 1967 they were
Comparable to those in Lebanon and Europe. The rate of growth
in Poultry production was so high that Jordan (West Bank included)
“As heading towards self-sufficiency.
The Situation of the poultry industry, however, changed with the
Advent of Israeli occupation in June 1967. Despite a brief initial
*etback, Jordan's poultry industry resumed its accelerated growth
at such a pace that local production of broiler meat reached, in
lan, About six times that of the West Bank, whereas it was, in 1967,
Sly so percent higher. In this section we will try to explore
the main attributes of the West Bank's poultry farming, and
*Valuate the prospects of its revival under occupation. The
ee
Hisham awartani, Problems of Marketing Poultry in Jordan,
(Amman: Cooperative Institute, 1966), pp 2, 7.

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Agricultural Development in the West Bank

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المنشئ

Hisham Masoud Awartani

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