BARI Provides Free Training To Olive Growers: Rafique Dogar

RAWALPINDI, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 29th May, 2022 ) :Barani Agricultural Research Institute (BARI) Chakwal is providing free advisory and training to new farmers for olive orchard establishment and management besides free training to olive growers and other value chain stakeholders from nursery production to orchard management and value addition.

According to Head of BARI, Chakwal, Muhammad Rafique Dogar, local olive oil has great acceptance in the local market due to premium quality of extra virgin olive oil.

He informed that a new state of the art olive extraction unit with 600 kg per hour processing capacity had been installed in Attock city to facilitate the olive growers.

Muhammad Rafique while talking to APP informed that two olive extraction units were already providing olive extraction services to the farmers at BARI Chakwal.

He said that total olive plantation in potohar was 1.7 million plants including 1.25 million in olive valley and 0.44 million in federal projects areas while total area under plantation was 13,300 acres including 9279 in olive valley and 3939 which was covered under Federal projects.

He informed that potential area is over 800,000 acres. Efforts were being made to cover 2118 acres including 518 acres in Pothwar, 1600 acres in Potohar, DG Khan, Bahawalpur, Cholistan and Bahawalnagar areas, under plantation plan of 2021-22 and to plant 70,000 plants under olive valley in Pothwar and 216,000 under PSDP (Phase-II) in DG Khan, Bahawalpur, Cholistan and Bahawalnagar areas which were included for olive plantation in Punjab in addition to Potohar.

Rafique Dogar said, olive plantation was being done particularly on marginal lands and the government initiatives had attracted the owners of marginal lands.

To a question he informed that other facilities BARI Chakwal was providing included business development advisory services, exposure visits of olive orchards and research facilities to growers, policy makers, processors, entrepreneurs, service providers, extension agents, academia, professionals, the government agencies, NGOs, youth and rural women and other value chain stakeholders.

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