Afrinpost – Special
The olive harvest season is about to end, and it is about a month earlier than usual in the previous seasons before the Turkish occupation on Afrin region in northern Syria, because the militia and settlers began to steal the season starting from the beginning of September, that is, before the olives had ripened.
The production of this current season is estimated at about (2 million) oil containers (the net weight of the container is 16 kg). Thus, general production has decreased by 33%, which is equivalent to one million containers from previous seasons, and this is due to many reasons, including restrictions on the people the high price negatively affected the quality of service.
The production was estimated at about 1.8 million containers, according to the production of Birine, based on the quantities of Birine produced, which is equivalent to 60 thousand tons of Birine, and each ton of Birine is about 30 containers of oil.
An average of 200 thousand olives containers for home-use are added to the production, for a total of 2 million oil containers.
The percentage of what the Turkish center located in “Rafatiya” presser in Jenderes district purchased is estimated at about 80%, which is equivalent to 1.6 million oil containers, with a total weight equivalent to 25,600 tons of oil, which is the amount that will be transported to Turkish lands and exported to European and American markets through channels and companies whose identities are unknown.
Losses amount to 70%, which is equivalent to about 1.4 million oil containers. Low prices were imposed on oil, estimated at (20-30 dollars, which is less than the previous price by about 15 dollars, it may increase more depending on the selling price. Consequently, what remains for the residents is 600,000 oil cans.
By calculating the value of the losses, 1.4 x 40 = 56 million as a minimum, did not reach the people.
The loss of the people from selling the remaining quantities of oil equals 600,000 x 15 = $ 9 million
The total loss due to losses due to theft and the difference in price is equivalent to 56 ÷ 9 = 65 million dollars.
In all, these calculations are estimates, and perhaps the losses exceed these figures, while the average production in previous seasons was equivalent to 3 million oil containers as in the 2018 season. Consequently, production decreased by about one million oil cans.
The total value of production is 2 million sheets x 40 dollars = 80 million dollars, and the total remaining in the hands of the people does not exceed 15 million dollars, and in return there are 18 million olive trees, so the average production of the tree is less than a dollar, and the militias imposed 1.52 dollars just to allow harvesting, and by adding the production costs of cultivation, pruning, workers, transportation wages, containers and royalties on transportation, the cost of the tree will exceed 3 dollars.
After the end of the season, militia gunmen launch kidnapping campaigns and demand ransoms that are paid out of the remaining percentage, which is less than 20% of the total production.
