BAKU, Azerbaijan, June 13
By Elnur Baghishov-Trend:
Iran exported about $40 million worth of ornamental plants and flowers in the last Iranian year (from March 21, 2019 to March 20, 2020), Director General of Greenhouses, Medicinal Plants and Edible Mushrooms Affairs Office under the Ministry of Agriculture Jihad Gholamreza Taghavi said, Trend reports citing the ministry.
According to Taghavi, these products were exported to Iran's neighbors including Iraq, Russia, Turkmenistan and Azerbaijan.
The director general added that Iran imported about $15 million worth of ornamental plants and flowers last Iranian year.
The official said that the exports of ornamental plants and flowers could help obtain foreign currency needed to import essential Iranian products.
The ornamental plants and flowers are grown on more than 7,800 hectares of agricultural land in Iran, Taghavi said.
"Every year, Iran produces about 4 billion flowers and ornamental plants, and the production increased by about 22-25 percent in the last Iranian year," he said.
The official noted that more than 150,000 people are engaged in the growing of ornamental plants and flowers production.
Last Iranian year, Iran exported about 7.1 million tons of agricultural and food products worth $5.82 billion. Meanwhile, 6.94 million tons of food and agricultural products worth $6.39 billion were imported.