Fig & Zaitūn

27/01/2025

Iceberg freshie.

27/01/2025

Chef's special — Musabbaḥa variant served with mince, chickpeas, and olive oil and Mutabbal (Middle eastern eggplant dip).

27/01/2025

Musabbaḥa (hummus) and home-made labneh (Greek-style yogurt). Healthy side dishes served in breakfast or lunch.

27/01/2025

Chef's special — homemade Levantine triple chocolate gâteau (cake).

16/03/2021

Olive oil — a dietary staple for some of the world's healthiest populations — comes in different forms in the market, the healthiest, or least processed, of which is the extra virgin olive oil. Olive oil that is truly extra virgin has a rich or distinct taste.

Extra virgin olive oil, however, is not recommended for deep frying or cooking. Its recommended uses are salad dressings, drizzling over pasta, marinating or sautéing fish & vegetables, or for direct consumption.

For cooking or deep frying, extra light or pomace olive oil can be used, which has a higher smoke point. These oils, however, are not as beneficial as the extra virgin olive oil but are considered better than other alternatives.

Want to order olive oil in ? Let us know — we can deliver it to your doorstep.

15/03/2021

Pakistan, which spends a lot on the import of edible oil, has kickstarted the plantation in the country. Production of olive oil in the country will not only help the local agriculture sector but will also help save foreign exchange.

https://nation.com.pk/15-Mar-2021/olive-plantation-to-benefit-pakistan-in-climate-change-exports-pm-khan

13/03/2021

From the desk of the founder: Food for thought:

When Pakistan, a country that is the 5th-largest global producer of sugarcane and the 8th-largest global producer of wheat, faces sugar and wheat crises, one after another, there’s a strong indication that something’s not right at the policymaking level.

https://drhussainfarooq.medium.com/food-for-thought-bf08d64ea772

When a country that is the 6th-largest global producer of sugarcane and the 8th-largest global producer of wheat faces sugar and wheat…

09/03/2021

Olive oil production has tripled in the last sixty (60) years. According to the official country data and estimates by the International Olive Council (IOC), the world production in the 2020/21 campaign could reach 3,197,000 t, implying a decrease of 0.3% compared to the previous campaign.

Some 93.% of the world total would be produced by IOC member countries.

During the 2019/20 season, the non-EU members of the IOC saw a significant increase in their olive production. Tunisia experienced an increase of +150%, Algeria an increase of +29.4%, while Turkey saw an increase of 16.3%.

Production in Spain during the 2019/20 season decreased by -37.1%, while Italy saw a huge increase of +110% in production. Portugal also experienced an increase of +40%.

https://www.internationaloliveoil.org/worlds-olive-oil-production-has-tripled/

Food

The 2019/20 season, although still with provisional data, shows world production of 3,207,000 t, a decrease of 1.7% (55,000 t) compared to the previous season, consumption of around 3,234,000 t (+5.8%) and imports and exports of 1,156,000 and 1,205,000 t respectively. IOC member countries would have...

09/03/2021

Olive oil — also known as the green gold — is a staple product of the Mediterranean countries, including Spain, Italy, Greece, Turkey, Tunisia, Egypt, and Palestine, among others.

Different varieties of olive oils are available in the market, which differ from one another in the method of preparation.

Image Credit: Salov / Filippo Berio

20/02/2021

Pakistan - Agrifood system statistics:

1- Rice: Pakistan has a net surplus and is a major rice exporter;

2- Pulses: Pakistan relies heavily on imported pulses;

3- Wheat: Five years ago, achieved its highest acreage under wheat – 9.2 million hectares – leading to production of 26 million tons of grain, or per capita availability of 125 kg, above self-sufficiency levels. Although yield has averaged close to its top levels since then – 2.8 tons per ha – the return of acreage to its mean levels of 8.75 million hectares has held back total output growth in the past 5 years. As estimated population continues to grow at 2 percent per annum, per capita cereal availability has thus recorded a steady decline to 112 kg, levels last seen 50 years ago in 1971.

Sources: UN Food and Agriculture Organization, Business Recorder

Fig & Zaitūn — the food chain.

20/02/2021

Although is self-sufficient in major staple foods, the country has been facing security issues over the past few years, indicating a problem with the distribution mechanism and poor compensation for the rural labor, who are the backbone of the nation's food chain.

Forty percent of Pakistani households are facing moderate or severe food insecurity in the aftermath of the Covid-19 pandemic, as per a survey conducted by the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics . There...