Jordanian Food Industries in a Century: Review

Abstract

The food industry sector, like other economic sectors, has witnessed rapid growth to keep pace with demographic, industrial, agricultural and social changes in all its aspects during the past hundred years since the establishment of the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan in 1921. From humble beginnings represented in simple facilities to meet consumer requirements from agricultural production preserved by simple and natural methods to advanced companies, It produces a wide variety of products that cover the needs of the local market and to dozens of countries around the world. The importance of the food industry in addition to its role in achieving food security is highlighted in its support for the Jordanian agricultural sector due to its reliance on the agricultural product as a raw material. Likewise, the food industry sector provides job opportunities for a high percentage of skilled and unskilled local workers. The renaissance of the food industries was accompanied and supported by several factors, including the various levels of legislation enacted by the state to protect the consumer and producer and provide the appropriate investment environment, the availability of huge numbers of qualified engineers to work in food factories and their management, and the development of the infrastructure necessary for the growth of the sector, which includes in addition to the elements of the traditional infrastructure of transportation and communications, an electricity and water network that includes some mechanical industries specialized in the production of some food machines and some components, marketing outlets, consulting companies specialized in quality management, and industrial laboratories in the public and private sectors. However, this sector suffers, like other economic sectors, from several problems, the most important of which is competition from foreign goods, dependence on imported raw materials, the high cost of production inputs, and some economic policies that hinder the growth of the sector, which confirms the need for more government support. Despite all these obstacles, the sector is resilient and continues to grow, and its growth is expected to accelerate in quantity and quality in the coming years to remain a major tributary to agriculture and industry. In this paper, we will discuss the most important stages of the development of the food industry sector, on the occasion of the first centenary of the founding of the Kingdom, and shed light on its characteristics, problems, strengths, and weaknesses, and how we can maximize the benefit from the technological and demographic developments that are expected to occur in the coming years.