A precarious supply route enabling heritage olive oil from Palestine to reach Kirkcudbright is being kept open – despite ongoing violence in the country of origin.
Katherine Naylor and Carol Ryall of Kirkcudbright Fair Trade group are awaiting the next shipment to arrive so they can supply customers with the prize-winning commodity.
Zaytoun was voted the UK’s top organic product in the Soil Association’s Boom Awards in 2021, an honour which gave a valuable morale boost to hard-pressed producers.
Katherine said: “It must be difficult for them but everybody is doing what they can.
“If your supply chain is interfered with it can cause a lot of problems.
“The price has gone up because of the difficulties in getting the oil out of the country.
“A lot of places still have stock and hopefully that will continue in future.”
Israeli state and settler violence against Palestinian people and property in the occupied West Bank has escalated since the October 7 Hamas atrocity, in which around 1,200 Israelis were killed.
However, destruction of historic olive groves had been going on for decades prior to the current Gaza war.
Carol said: “I would imagine there’s quite a risk because of what’s going on.
“They are concentrating more on towns and cities and it may be that agricultural land is being left alone.
“But then you have the problem of getting it – they are hardly allowing anything out or in.
“Everyone does what they can do.”
She added: “Regardless of world politics, fair trade continues to work across the world to help small farmers sell and develop their produce – and Zaytoun olive oil from Palestine is one such example.
“We don’t care about the politics – we care about the people who are small producers trying to make a living and keep their families alive.”
People can pick up of Kirkcudbright Fair Trade maps from the library which show local retailers stocking a wide range of fair trade foods, wines, flowers and clothing.
Speaking after the Zaytoun cooperative won the Boom Awards accolade, managing director Manal Ramadan White, said: “We are fortunate to work with producers and suppliers who respect the soil, who have not only held on to the wisdom passed down from their forebears but have adapted it to suit their own circumstances, as well as our planet’s.
“They do this with love and commitment under the most challenging circumstances.
“For decades Palestinian farmers have faced severe barriers in carrying out their normal day-to-day agricultural activities caused through restrictions on movement and lack of access to crucial inputs including access to their own water resources.
“Palestinian olive trees are amongst the oldest in the world – they signify a connection to a long and rich history.
“The oil in this bottle is from olives that have been hand-picked from rain-fed trees that are nestled on beautiful terraces in the West Bank, lovingly tended by farmers for generations.”
