19 October 2007

CHOUF: Chouf's pine-nut cultivators criticized the government's failure to put an end to the illegal import of pine nuts, saying that they are suffering increasing hardships each year as a result of competition with the foreign pine seeds, particularly the Turkish.

"We also denounce the government for not compensating us for the losses we have incurred due to repetitive fires that have hit our pinewoods this year," cultivator Wahib Yazbek told The Daily Star.

"The cultivation of pine trees is a really costly business," he added. "The cost of the harvest is very high and therefore the price of pine nuts is relatively high. However, with the market flooded with imported pine nuts, our business might collapse at any moment."

Pine trees have long been considered as a tourist attraction and an economic resource for the mountainous Chouf area.

Mohammad Kamal, another cultivator, echoed Yazbek, explaining that the cultivation process includes many costly stages, starting with those who pick the pine nuts, then those who gather them and finally those who transport them.

"Owners of pinelands are no longer capable of bearing this situation," Kamal said.

Issam Jaafar, a pine-nut picker, said "we earn $50 a day while pine-nut gatherers earn $20."

"Picking pine nuts is not a piece of cake," he said. "Pickers' lives are exposed to a real danger since the height of pine trees is 10 meters minimum."

Abu Youssef, another cultivator, said pine seeds "are a basic ingredient of Arab sweets."

"But unfortunately the owners of such sweets shops do not care about quality and prefer using imported seeds, particularly the Turkish, which are cheaper, instead of finely harvested Lebanese pine seeds."

Abu youssef said pine-nut cultivation constituted what he called "economic security" for Mount Lebanon residents.

"We are used to selling pine seeds in order to provide our children with the education they need," he said.

He called on the Agriculture Ministry to find a solution to the current situation by preventing the illegal import of pine seeds.