Gazan farmer dreams big on dragon fruit cultivation

STORY: Gazan farmer dreams big on dragon fruit cultivation DATELINE: Aug. 9, 2023 LENGTH: 00:02:53 LOCATION: GAZA, Palestine CATEGORY: AGRICULTURE SHOTLIST: 1. various of Aaed Abu Ramadan and his assistant on the farm 2. SOUNDBITE (Arabic): AAED ABU RAMADAN, Farmer in Gaza 3. various of Aaed Abu Ramadan and his assistant on the farm STORYLINE: For the fourth year in a row, Aaed Abu Ramadan, a Palestinian farmer from the coastal enclave, has harvested dragon fruit, also known as "pitaya," and marketed his produce in local markets. The 52-year-old father of six came up with the idea of growing dragon fruit in Gaza five years ago when he saw it for the first time in China. He bought about 800 seedlings of dragon fruit with 10,000 U.S. dollars from merchants who used to visit China, and cultivated them on his 500-hectare farm. He succeeded in harvesting about 150 kg of dragon fruit in 2020. SOUNDBITE (Arabic): AAED ABU RAMADAN, Farmer in Gaza "Dragon fruit is native to South America, and was transported to