An Omani cultivator’s farm in the wilayat of Al Kamil W’Al Wafi in South Sharqiyah governorate has produced 50 tonnes of fig.

Following the record harvest, Nasser Salem al Rasbi on Monday began the second phase of the fig cultivation project by planting 5,000 seedlings in the presence of H E Dr Ahmed bin Nasser al Bakri, Undersecretary for Agriculture in the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Water Resources.

His farm stretches over 40 acres and in addition to fig it has various crops such as mango, lemon, orange and others.

Speaking to Muscat Daily, Rasbi said he started the project four year ago with the main goal to diversify income sources. 

“I have followed experts’ recommendations regarding the expansion and diversification of crop production to boost food security which has become a key goal for the country that targets to achieve self-sufficiency in domestic crops,” he said.

Talking about the fig cultivation project, he said, “I began in 2017 by cultivating 6,000 seedlings. In the next season my project saw expansion with the addition of 5,000 more  seedlings. My farm currently has an annual production of around 50 tonnes of figs.”

He said to gather knowledge about different farming methods he visited several countries.

“Today, farmers in the sultanate grow a wide variety of fruits all year round,” he said.

“For my cultivation I use modern agriculture methods, such as drip irrigation.”

Rasbi said he utilised social media platforms and managed to sell his harvest to wholesale traders and retailers. 

Encouraged by his success, Rasbi plans to double the acreage in the next agricultural season and increase revenues from cultivating high-quality fig to gain a completive edge in the local market. 

“In the third phase, I hope to plant 46,000 fig seedlings for a period of three years.”