http://www.dailystar.com.lb/article.asp?edition_id=1&categ_id=1&article_id=112070
Farmers enjoy early orange-blossom harvest, urge Cabinet to back industry
By Mohammed Zaatari
Daily Star staff
Wednesday, February 24, 2010
SIDON: Spring has arrived in Lebanon ahead of schedule, and orange blossoms, which ordinarily bloom in March, are being harvested this month.
In a bid to make the most of the early season, a large number of men and women flocked to the fields of the southern village of Maghdousheh and started picking orange blossoms.
This is the first time that we pick blossoms in February, said Nicholas Kattan, a farmer from Maghdousheh.
He attributed the anomaly to the unusually hot weather that Lebanon has witnessed in the previous week.
Kattan added that he will harvest orange blossoms in three phases this season, which will extend over several weeks.
Maghdousheh is dubbed by many as the Capital of Orange Blossoms and Orange Blossom Essence due to the presence of a large number of citrus groves which yield the flowers.
Orange essence is usually extracted from orange blossoms and sold in markets. The essence is believed to have positive benefits to ones health.
The orange blossoms I get from dozens of trees yield between 60 and 100 kilograms per day. Each kilogram is worth LL5,000-6,000 depending on the quality, Kattan said.
He said most citrus trees in Mahgdousheh were planted over 50 years ago which means the orange flowers they produce are of high quality.
Toni Khouri, another Maghdousheh farmer, urged those watching him as he picked orange blossoms to enjoy the fresh air and take a deep breath in order to recover from illnesses caused by breathing the polluted air of the city.
In spite of climate change that has made us pick orange blossoms earlier than usual, I believe the season will be promising said Khouri, who is calling for government support.
Since the villagers of Magdousheh are pioneers in making orange-flower water essence, I urge the government to help us in selling our products and promote this Lebanese industry, Hala Hayek said as she was setting up the equipment used to extract orange flower water from orange blossoms.
