Agricultural marketing in Jordan is often treated as a commercial activity that follows production. Agricultural experts, however, argue that this approach overlooks the fundamental role marketing plays in determining the success of the sector.
Rather than simply deciding how agricultural products are sold, marketing influences what farmers produce, which markets they target, the standards they must meet, when products reach the market, and how they are transported, packaged, stored and processed.
Experts say this ultimately determines whether Jordan’s agricultural sector can generate sustainable income, create jobs and expand exports, or continue consuming scarce resources while leaving its most vulnerable participants to absorb the losses.
They argue that Jordan’s agricultural challenges are therefore not simply a question of how much the country produces. The issue also concerns what is produced, for whom, according to which specifications, at what time and under what market conditions.
At the institutional level, experts have called for a two-pronged approach. The first would involve establishing an independent body responsible for regulating agricultural production and marketing, activating the Chamber of Agriculture and allowing the private sector to operate central markets across the governorates under clear and transparent standards.
They have also proposed establishing a national electronic agricultural exchange to connect farmers directly with buyers and reduce dependence on intermediaries that add little value to the supply chain.
The second approach would focus on the production base itself. Experts have called for collective production and marketing cooperatives capable of managing sorting, packaging, refrigeration and transportation. Such cooperatives could provide small farmers with the collective bargaining power they are often unable to achieve individually.
The Market Determines the Farmer’s Return
Food security expert Dr. Fadel Al-Zoubi said the key to understanding the issue lies in recognising that, in agricultural economics, a farmer’s income is ultimately determined at the market rather than at the farm.
For decades, he said, agricultural policies in Jordan have largely focused on increasing production and improving productivity, while marketing has been left to intermediaries and an unequal balance of power within the market.
Despite these challenges, the agricultural sector plays a significant role in Jordan’s economy. In 2024, agriculture contributed 5.8% of GDP, generating more than JD1.9 billion in added value. Plant production accounted for 72.7% of this figure, while animal production represented 27.3%.
Export performance has also improved significantly. Agricultural and food exports increased from JD695.8 million in 2020 to JD1.334 billion in 2024, representing growth of more than 91%. Exports of plant products almost doubled, rising from JD292.6 million to JD606.1 million, while exports of live animals and animal products increased from JD175.4 million to JD268.6 million.
According to Al-Zoubi, this leaves a gap of around JD270 million before Jordan reaches the Economic Modernization Vision target of JD1.6 billion in agricultural and food exports by 2033.
However, he warned that strong export figures conceal structural problems within the domestic market.
During the 1960s and 1970s, major irrigation projects in the Jordan Valley were accompanied by government and cooperative marketing institutions that purchased farmers’ crops and marketed them locally and internationally as part of Jordan’s efforts to achieve greater self-sufficiency.
The system, however, lacked a clear framework determining what should be produced, when it should be produced and how it should be marketed. Farmers continued to make individual production decisions, contributing to recurring seasonal surpluses and sharp price declines during peak production periods.
After 1985, cooperative institutions weakened and mechanisms such as indicative pricing were removed without being replaced by a comprehensive institutional alternative.Responsibility for agricultural marketing subsequently became divided among the Ministry of Agriculture, the Ministry of Industry and Trade, the Farmers Union and specialized agricultural unions.
Over the past two decades, Amman’s central market has emerged as the country’s main agricultural trading hub, handling more than 60% of agricultural products. However, Al-Zoubi said the daily auction system lacks sufficient transparency, with prices often determined without consistent standards for quality and production costs or an independent regulatory body capable of ensuring fairness.
The Cost of an Uncoordinated Market
The financial consequences of these structural problems are significant.
According to Al-Zoubi, the agricultural sector lost more than JD300 million over three years as a result of uncoordinated regulatory decisions. A further JD250 million was lost over a decade following disruptions to exports to traditional markets.
More than 60% of agricultural investors have also reported concerns over legislative and regulatory instability, while farmers’ debt is estimated at between JD400 million and JD500 million.
One attempt to address these challenges came with the establishment of the Jordanian-Palestinian Agricultural Products Marketing Company in 2021.
The company was established with capital of $18 million, divided equally between Jordan and Palestine. Its responsibilities extend beyond exports and include restoring access to traditional foreign markets, opening new markets, establishing grading and packing facilities, addressing distortions in the domestic market and expanding contract farming.
Contract farming, in particular, can provide small farmers with greater certainty by securing a market for their products before planting rather than forcing them to search for buyers after harvest.
The company has recorded progress internationally. It has regained access to 16 European markets, increased exports to Gulf markets through Saudi Arabia by 28% and opened markets for Palestinian avocados in Dubai and Turkey.
Its 2026–2027 plan includes further expansion into Kuwait, Iraq and Turkey. The government has also allocated JD2 million to support air freight in 2026, alongside a joint project with the General Union of Farmers in Zarqa Governorate.
However, Al-Zoubi argued that international progress has not been matched by equivalent improvements within the domestic market.
The problem, he said, “Is structural rather than administrative.” The company was established primarily as a marketing incubator intended eventually to transition to the private sector. It was not designed to act as the regulator of Jordan’s agricultural market.
No matter how successful one commercial company becomes, he argued, it cannot replace an independent market regulator, an agricultural chamber that effectively represents producers or a national database connecting production patterns with agricultural areas, costs, returns and market demand.
The Jordanian-Palestinian company should therefore be viewed as an institution to build upon rather than a complete solution to Jordan’s agricultural marketing challenges.
Marketing Must Begin Before Planting
Dr. Nael Al-Dhaher, a professor at the University of Jordan’s Faculty of Agriculture and an expert in rural development and food security, similarly argued that agricultural marketing ultimately determines whether production generates income for farmers or becomes a low-value surplus or food loss.
The central question facing Jordanian agriculture, he said, is not simply, “How much do we produce?” Instead, the sector must consider what it produces, which markets it intends to serve, what specifications those markets require, when products should reach consumers and how they will be transported, packaged, stored and processed.
When large numbers of farmers plant the same crop at the same time without reliable information about domestic and export demand, seasonal oversupply can cause farm-gate prices to collapse.
Small farmers are particularly vulnerable because they often lack refrigerated storage, adequate transportation or the financial flexibility to hold products until prices recover.For this reason, Al-Dhaher said effective agricultural marketing must begin before farmers decide what to plant.
Farmers and agricultural institutions should first determine their target markets, the varieties importers require, expected demand, size and quality specifications and whether expected prices will justify production costs.
This market-led approach is increasingly reflected in agricultural programs operating in Jordan.The World Bank’s agricultural resilience and value chain development project, for example, includes mechanisms for analyzing market demand, identifying products suitable for production in Jordan, promoting exports and improving farmers’ access to markets.
These measures highlight the continuing need to address gaps in market information and coordination.
Agriculture, Food Security and Rural Development
Agricultural marketing also has broader implications for food security and rural development.
Strengthening agricultural value chains and investing in refrigerated storage, transportation, processing and post-harvest handling can reduce food losses while increasing the value of agricultural products.
Organizing producers and expanding contract farming can also improve farmers’ access to markets and provide greater income stability. As Al-Dhaher explained, farmers who receive fair and relatively stable prices are more likely to continue producing, investing and employing workers.
When markets become highly volatile and prices consistently fail to cover production costs, farmers may reduce production or leave agriculture altogether, with consequences for the wider rural economy. The Jordanian-Palestinian Agricultural Products Marketing Company was established partly to address this disconnect between farmers and markets.
Instead of requiring thousands of individual farmers to independently search for traders and exporters, a specialized institution can consolidate produce, establish specifications, contract directly with farmers, organize sorting and packaging, identify international buyers and coordinate exports.
Accessing international markets, however, requires more than simply finding buyers. European, Gulf and other international markets impose requirements relating to size, appearance, packaging, quality, safety and traceability. Some markets also maintain specific standards for pesticide residues and agricultural production practices.
Professional packing facilities can therefore transform agricultural produce from an inconsistent commodity into a standardized commercial product that meets buyers’ requirements.
Why Previous Initiatives Have Struggled
Jordan has introduced numerous agricultural marketing programs over the years, but many have struggled to create lasting change. Al-Dhaher cautioned against describing these initiatives collectively as failures without comprehensive evaluation.Some programs have ended when funding expired, while others have achieved partial or temporary results.
Nevertheless, he identified several recurring problems that help explain why Jordan’s agricultural marketing challenges have persisted despite repeated interventions.One of the most significant is that many programs begin with production rather than demand.
Instead of identifying market requirements and directing production accordingly, interventions have often attempted to find buyers for products after they have already been produced.This contributes to seasonal oversupply. Thousands of farmers make individual planting decisions, often influenced by prices from the previous season. When the price of a particular crop rises, more farmers may plant it the following year, increasing supply and ultimately pushing prices back down.
Jordan also remains heavily dependent on traditional central markets. Although intermediaries and central markets play an important role in collecting and distributing agricultural products, they are not sufficient to develop high-value exports or connect smaller producers with modern supply chains.
Weaknesses in cold storage, packaging, grading and transportation further reduce the value of agricultural products. Produce may leave the farm in good condition but lose significant value through inadequate handling, storage or transportation.
According to the FAO, weaknesses in infrastructure, storage, refrigeration, packaging and marketing are among the major contributors to food loss across agricultural value chains in developing countries.
Another problem is the reliance on individual funded projects rather than permanent institutions.
Some initiatives perform effectively while international or government funding remains available but weaken once that funding ends because their revenue, management or ownership structures were not designed to operate sustainably.
External factors also remain significant. Jordanian agriculture has historically relied on regional export markets, leaving the sector vulnerable to border closures, disrupted trade routes, regional conflicts and rising shipping costs. These are risks that individual marketing projects cannot address alone.
Building a National Agricultural Marketing System
Rather than launching another marketing project every few years, Al-Dhaher argued that Jordan needs an integrated national agricultural marketing system.
Such a system would connect the Ministry of Agriculture, the Jordanian-Palestinian Agricultural Products Marketing Company, the Cooperative Corporation, the Farmers Union, exporters, food processors, central markets, universities, scientific research institutions and logistics providers.
Jordan already has a productive agricultural base and demonstrated export potential. The challenge is increasing the value farmers receive from what they produce while reducing price fluctuations, losses and marketing risks.
Farmers Need a Market Before They Plant.
Vice President of the Farmers Union, Engineer Hassan Al-Samadi, also argued that Jordan’s agricultural problem is not primarily a lack of production, but farmers’ ability to successfully market what they produce.
Under the existing model, farmers often produce first and search for a market afterwards. Al-Samadi argued that this sequence needs to change.
Farmers should understand market demand before planting crops. Without reliable information about demand, prices and available markets, overproduction can quickly result in falling prices, with farmers ultimately bearing the financial losses.
He said the Jordanian-Palestinian Agricultural Products Marketing Company should therefore operate not only as a marketing company but as a direct support mechanism for farmers.
Its role should include opening markets, consolidating produce, establishing specifications, supporting exports and connecting farmers with buyers before the agricultural season begins.
Previous marketing projects, Al-Samadi argued, have often focused on constructing facilities and implementing programs before establishing the market itself.
Agricultural marketing is therefore not simply about building warehouses or infrastructure. It begins with understanding where a product will be sold, what buyers require and what price the farmer can expect — all before planting begins.
What Jordan’s Agricultural Market Still Needs
Director General of the Jordanian Farmers Union, Engineer Mahmoud Al-Awran, highlighted infrastructure as another major obstacle.
He questioned how Jordan could develop an effective agricultural marketing system without sufficient refrigerated trucks to transport vegetables and fruit, describing the lack of adequate cold-chain infrastructure as one of the persistent challenges facing the sector.
Al-Awran argued that an effective agricultural marketing system should help reduce production costs for farmers while ensuring agricultural products remain available to consumers at reasonable prices.
He also stressed the importance of agricultural research and better coordination of irrigated and rain-fed production. Decisions regarding which crops are produced, in what quantities and across which areas should increasingly reflect the requirements of both domestic and international markets.
Without this coordination, Jordan risks continuing the same cycle: farmers produce without sufficient knowledge of demand, markets struggle to absorb seasonal surpluses, prices fall and producers bear the losses.
The debate over whether production should drive marketing or marketing should guide production therefore points to a wider structural issue. Sustainable agricultural growth requires the two to operate as part of the same system.
For Jordan, that means understanding the market before planting begins, coordinating production around demand and building the infrastructure and institutions needed to ensure that what farmers produce can reach buyers efficiently, competitively and at a sustainable return.
Words by Abdullah Al-Rabihat
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