Gaza farmers stop marketing their vegetables to the West Bank

Gaza farmers stop marketing their vegetables to the West Bank

 Thursday, farmers and traders in the Gaza Strip completely stopped marketing vegetable products to the West Bank, as a result of Israeli obstacles and its impossible requirements of changing the standards for marketing some agricultural products through the Kerem Shalom crossing.

The Ministry of Agriculture in Gaza stated that the occupation imposed an impossible condition to allow the tomato crop to be marketed in the West Bank, which consisted of removing the green cover of tomatoes from every seed that entered the northern governorates.

The tomato crop is considered the most important marketing crop, which sits on the throne of marketing crops, and without its presence in the list of vegetables intended for export, it is difficult to market the rest of the vegetable varieties, which incurs heavy losses for farmers.

It is noteworthy that the Gaza Strip markets to the West Bank and abroad 15 types of agricultural products such as (tomatoes, potatoes, cucumbers, hot peppers, sweet, zucchini and eggplant...etc).

The Ministry of Agriculture renewed its call on all international and Arab institutions and bodies to stand up to their responsibilities to compel the occupation to lift restrictions on the marketing and export of agricultural products, and work to introduce production inputs to ensure the continuation of the agricultural process in the Strip.

The ministry indicated that the farmers had intentions to refrain from agriculture in light of the low local prices and the occupation’s prevention of allowing their products to be marketed to the West Bank and export to Arab countries, as well as preventing the introduction of production requirements, warning that the continuation of this situation will be reflected on the food basket of citizens in the Strip. .