An Estimation of Demand and Supply Functions for Olive Oil in Jordan for Time Period (1978-2012)

The olive and olive oil sector is considered as an, important agricultural sectors in Jordan, where the percentage of area planted with olive trees is about 73% of the total area of fruit trees, and 26% of the total cultivated area. Also olive is the main food component of the population in Jordan. This study comes as an attempt to identify the factors that affect the demand and supply of olive oil, and it used methods of descriptive statistics and quantitative analysis of the time period 1978-2012 for the variables that affect the demand and supply of olive oil. The study came up with the fact that income and population are the most important factors that affect the demand, while the area planted with olives, and the annual average rainfall and the phenomenon of the olive Alternate Bearing (Almoaoama), the most important factors that affect the supply of olive oil. The study recommended, the importance of encouraging the domestic and external demand for Jordanian olive oil, And to continue to adopt the policies that aimed to expand the cultivation of olives, and encourage the use of advanced technologies in the field practices, in order to increase the production of olives and olive oil.