Exporting Artichokes: Egypt

Transcription

1 4 Exporting Artichokes: Egypt GENERAL INFORMATION Implementing Institution: National Research Centre (NRC) Head: Prof. Hany El-Nazer Details of Institution: Address: : National Research Centre, El-Tahrir Street, Dokki, Cairo, Egypt Tel.: (+20) , Fax: (+20) , : info@nrc.org.eg Web site: : Implementation Period: Three years 47

2 48 V OLUME 13: EXAMPLES OF KNOWLEDGE-SHARING FOR LOCAL DEVELOPMENT IN THE SOUTH Costs: US$70,000, comprising US$40,000 from the Egyptian Ministry of Agriculture and US$30,000 from the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO). S UMMARY The globe artichoke crop is of considerable economic importance in Egypt. Some 3,000 hectares are planted with the crop and annual production is about 70,000 tons. Traditionally, artichoke flower heads (the edible part of the plant) appear in Egyptian markets at the end of February, with most production harvested during March and April. This relatively short season provides little opportunity for growers to export their product. In cooperation with the College of Agriculture, Ain Shams University and the Ministry of Agriculture of Egypt, the National Research Centre (NRC) aimed to develop a system for producing earlymaturing globe artichokes as well as increasing the area under cultivation by expanding the area planted to include semi-arid land. To achieve these goals, three parallel efforts were undertaken. First, instead of propagating plants using traditional methods such as planting offshoots and dividing crown segments, tissue-cultured plantlets were introduced. This allowed the production of diseasefree plantlets with well-developed root systems that enabled the crop to develop quickly in the field and helped growers to obtain an early yield. Second, a watersaving drip irrigation system was introduced. Third, an optimized fertilization regime was developed. As a result of introducing these three practical innovations, based on the latest scientific and technical methods, to artichoke producers, the area planted with artichokes was increased to include semi-arid land, yet water savings of some 40 per cent have been achieved. In addition, early yields were increased, providing farmers with excess production for export to more lucrative markets. Following the experience, farmers incomes have increased significantly. B ACKGROUND AND J USTIFICATION The National Research Centre (NRC) is a multidisciplinary institution consisting of 11 divisions and 70 departments that carries out research into basic and advanced technologies aimed at serving the national economy. The Egyptian agricultural sector depends largely on cash crops. Therefore, NRC has carried out several studies aimed at developing such crops, including the globe artichoke, using suitable new technologies. In Egypt, the globe artichoke is tradi-

3 Exporting Artichokes: Egypt 49 tionally propagated vegetatively using stump cuttings (crown pieces) and offshoots. After the harvest, during the period from May to August, growers typically leave about 3,000 square metres of old mother plants from which they will select young offshoots and stump cuttings with which to plant each hectare of the next crop. The technique of stumping involves cutting the artichoke plants about five centimetres below ground level. Often, these cuttings are then planted in a nursery area three to four weeks before transplanting into the field when the new planting season starts, usually in the first week of September. An advantage of these vegetative techniques for artichoke propagation is that growers are able to the select mother plants that they will retain for the next growing season according to agronomic qualities such as plant vigour, earliness, head quality and yield. On the other hand, only around 60 to 70 per cent of the transplants survive, especially when stump cuttings are transferred directly into the field. In addition, there may be large differences in physiological age between detached offshoots and stump cuttings, leading to differences in the timing of head initiation and harvest. Moreover, vegetative propagation methods favour the spread of bacterial, fungal, viral and nematode problems from one generation of plants to the next. In Egypt, local cultivars account for the major part of artichoke production. These varieties, however, are often very variable, and the flower heads (the part that is eaten) tend to be of poor quality unsuitable for export purposes. In addition, the best prices are obtained for artichokes produced in the early part of the season (February). Therefore, NCR embarked on a project to help farmers improve both the quality and earliness of their artichoke crops, bringing the harvesting season forward into December and January in efforts to boost both artichoke exports and farmers profits. D ESCRIPTION The project involved three major themes: selection and dissemination of improved planting material; development of improved irrigation techniques; and development of improved fertilizer regimes. Several clones of a local cultivar (Balady, fig. 1) exhibiting good agronomic characteristics, including resistance to salinity and drought, were selected. These were tested under Egyptian conditions alongside three varieties imported from France (Chrysantheme, Hyerois and Violet) and three from the United States (Green Globe, Imperial Star and Large Green). Vegetative growth characters, early and total yield, head parameters, fibre content and chemical composition of the edible parts were all evaluated. It was observed that, while the Egyptian and French cultivars matured earlier than the American cultivars, the French cultivars gave the largest yield.

4 50 V OLUME 13: EXAMPLES OF KNOWLEDGE-SHARING FOR LOCAL DEVELOPMENT IN THE SOUTH Figure 1 Flower head (edible part) of the Egyptian artichoke cultivar, Balady. Figure 2 The multiplication stage of the in vitro micropropagation of the globe artichoke. The next phase was to develop a propagation method. This was achieved with the assistance of Carmine Damiano (head of the Fruit Research Institute, Rome, Italy), whose knowledge and expertise helped NRC scientists to establish an efficient protocol for the propagation of artichoke in tissue culture. Large numbers of true-to-type, diseasefree plants can now be produced using an optimized in vitro meristem culture method involving four stages: selection of explants, growth and multiplication (fig. 2), rooting and acclimatization. During the tissue culture process, 10 plantlets can be derived from a single explant every month. Theoretically, this means that a million plantlets could be produced from just 10 shoot tips after six months. In practice, owing to practical limitations such as labour and the space available in the greenhouse, NRC scientists actually produce some 20,000 plants a year, enough for a two-hectare crop. However, there are also several private tissue culture laboratories that are also producing globe artichoke plantlets in vitro. After acclimatization, plantlets derived from tissue culture are planted directly into the field in July, thus bringing forward the main planting season by two months. This helps to increase significantly both the number and weight of early flower heads per plant and per hectare. Indeed, although total yield, measured over the whole harvesting season, is not affected, using tissue culturederived plantlets rather than offshoots and stump cuttings has increased early season yields from 15 to 50 per cent of the total crop. This means that a greater proportion of the harvested product (up to 75 per cent) is now suitable for the fresh, export market, especially the valuable Christmas market in December, thus providing farmers with higher prices for their product. Crop quality and early maturity are also enhanced by using more efficient irrigation techniques, which have also enabled the expansion of artichoke crops into semi-arid regions of the country. Drip irrigation, which involves laying narrow pipes across the field with nozzles placed every 100 centimetres, means that water is distributed evenly across the field and direct evaporation from the soil surface is reduced (fig. 3). Soluble mineral

5 Exporting Artichokes: Egypt 51 fertilizers are added with the irrigation water at recommended rates. Expanding artichoke production into more semi-arid areas, where the soil is sandier, also means that the use of organic fertilizer has been developed. Growers are now recommended to add some 100 cubic metres of manure per hectare. Figure 3 Globe artichoke cultivation using a drip irrigation system. As the final stage in the entire project, artichoke growers and exporters have been provided with guidelines on best practices for harvesting, cooling and packing. Links have also been developed between growers, packers, exporters and importers so that knowledge concerning best practices, prices and market supply and demand is shared along the whole supply chain. P ARTNERSHIPS As mentioned earlier, Carmine Damiano of the Fruit Research Institute, Italy, helped with the establishment of a protocol for the in vitro propagation of globe artichoke cultivars. Another major partner was the Department of Horticultural Crops, College of Agriculture, Ain Shams University, which provided greenhouse and experimental farm facilities for the field trials. The Ministry of Agriculture also procured the imported varieties of globe artichoke used in the project in addition to providing some financial support. Moreover, Ministry of Agriculture research stations around Egypt provided important information and statistics on artichoke production. The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) sponsored three training workshops that were held in the main artichoke-growing areas. In addition, a pilot farm has been established in the El-Tahrir region. More than 200 farmers and other agricultural specialists have visited the site to learn more about new practices and new theories of globe artichoke production. The project has been so successful in improving the marketable yield of Egyptian globe artichokes that many non-traditional growers are now producing the crop. Some of them, together with business entrepreneurs who are helping to develop the packing and export trade, have now also entered into partnership with NRC. In addition, to help maximize benefits, a non-governmental society of globe artichoke growers is currently being established in Egypt. This society will offer the new and improved cultivars to farmers and provide marketing assistance, especially for export.

6 52 V OLUME 13: EXAMPLES OF KNOWLEDGE-SHARING FOR LOCAL DEVELOPMENT IN THE SOUTH R EPLICABILITY L ESSONS L EARNED Traditionally, artichoke production in Egypt centred on the governorates of Alexandria, Behiara, El-Behara, Giza and Kafr El-Dawar. As a result of the NRC project, production has since started in new areas, including El-Esmaelia governorate. Recently, globe artichoke has also been sown in central Egypt (Bany Sweaf and Faium) and field trials have demonstrated that artichokes can be grown successfully on the reclaimed land of the El-Tahrir region. The Ministry of Agriculture, working in collaboration with other technical and research authorities, is continuing efforts to disseminate the new high-yielding varieties of globe artichoke to other suitable climatic regions of the country. Indeed, owing to the improvements made to artichoke production, many non-traditional growers are now producing the crop. Many of these new growers already have experience in dealing with new agricultural practices. For example, they are familiar with planting tissue culturederived plantlets of other crops such as banana. It was therefore relatively simple for NRC scientists to explain to them the method of cultivating tissue-cultured globe artichoke plantlets. In contrast, to educate the traditional growers in the use of the plantlets, NRC staff first trained local agricultural extension officers. These officers, who spend a great deal of time with the farmers in their fields, then explained the new procedures and their benefits to the farmers themselves. Achievement of the goals of the project required the different skills and experiences of various specialists, from biotechnologists and agronomists to experts on post-harvest procedures and marketing. The project was successful because dividing the research team into different work groups effectively combined the efforts of these experts. This also provided opportunities for agricultural scientists, researchers and growers from different institutes and companies to present, discuss and exchange the latest information on various aspects of globe artichoke production. The practical application of research was another benefit derived from the project. The successful integration of biotechnological techniques (tissue culture) into globe artichoke production encouraged other crop producers and agricultural companies to use the new technology. The project also demonstrated how a country could use its natural resources and environmental conditions to develop its economy, a concept that will act as a guide for other, similar projects in the future. Among these projects will be the identification of other cash crops that could be improved and used to develop export markets and thus foreign exchange.

7 Exporting Artichokes: Egypt 53 I MPACT The diffusion of new technologies for the production of the globe artichoke has had an important socio-economic impact, including increased knowledge and skills of farmers and increased job opportunities for farmers and farm labourers. Living conditions have also been improved, mainly because the net gain from one hectare of artichokes has increased from 14,190 to 23,800 Egyptian pounds (from about US$2,400 to more than US$4,000) and the life cycle of the artichoke in the field has been reduced from nine to six months. Moreover, based on the improved earliness and quality of the crop as well as improved post-harvest procedures, the volume of globe artichokes exported has multiplied over the past five years, with an extra 1,000 hectares of the crop being grown, thus helping Egypt to earn foreign currency. Among those countries importing Egyptian artichokes are France, Germany, Greece, Saudi Arabia and Turkey. F UTURE P LANS The successful demonstration of globe artichoke production on semi-arid land with sandy soils now provides the opportunity for a further expansion of production in other areas of Egypt. This expansion is being driven by the demands of the export markets, which continue to grow. Thus, in the near future, NRC will encourage businessmen and non-conventional artichoke growers to produce the crop for export. Both Egyptian and foreign enterprises are being approached as Egypt has the advantage of low labour costs. There are also plans to develop collaboration with ministries, research institutions and other organizations abroad in order to develop indigenous skills in globe artichoke production. Case Study Prepared by: Shawky A. Bekheet Address: Plant Biotechnology Department, National Research Centre, El-Tahrir Street, Dokki, Cairo, Egypt shawky005@yahoo.com Project Participants: Mohamed K. El-Bahr, Plant Biotechnology Department, National Research Centre, Egypt: Overall project management and supervision of tissue culture group. Mohamed E. Ragab, Horticultural Crops Department, College of Agriculture, Ain Shams University, Egypt: Supervised fieldexperiment group. Mohamed A. El-Shal, Horticultural Crops Department, College of Agriculture, Alexandria University, Egypt: Supervised post-harvest research group.

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