H.E. Sison, Mr. Moawad and Ms Herbol inaugurating the center

The Olive Oil Collection Centre was inaugurated by the United States Ambassador to Lebanon, H.E. Michele J. Sison, RMF’s General Director Mr. Michel Moawad and the Lebanon Mission Director of USAID, Denise A. Herbol, in Mejdlaya on 12th December 2008.
Also present at the event were the CHF (Cooperative Housing Foundation) representative Mr Ayman Abdallah, RMF‘s agricultural sector director Mr. Nabil Moawad, mayors from the local municipalities, representatives of various local and international associations active in Lebanon, representatives of local agricultural cooperatives, owners of olive oil presses and local farmers.   

The center is part of the CEDARSplus program (Enhancement of the Olive Oil Sector in Lebanon) funded by USAID, and is located at the Agricultural Center of the North (CAN) in Mejdlaya.

The Centre features a fully-automated olive oil bottling facility as well as storage units to serve small and medium producers from the region. The storage capacity is around 100,000,000 liters of olive oil. The bottling facility can fill and cap 1,500 bottles per hour. The USAID grant also funded the procurement of a truck equipped with a stainless steel container for the purpose of collecting olive oil from the producers and transporting it to the Centre. More than 600 farmers will benefit from the Centre which opened in partnership with USAID, CHF and RMF. USAID funded the Centre with a $977,394 grant.

Mr. Abdallah, H.E. Sison, Mr. Michel Moawad, Ms Herbol and Mr. Nabil Moawad

H.E. Sison and Mr. Michel Moawad
visiting the new center

Listening to the explanations of the center's director

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