BAKU, Azerbaijan, September 7
By Elnur Baghishov – Trend:
The estimates show that Iran grows 6.3 million tons of tomatoes a year, Deputy Minister of Agriculture Jihad and Chairman of Central Organization for Rural Cooperatives of Iran, Mohammad Ali Tahmasebi said, Trend reports referring to the ministry's website.
He made the remark at a meeting held in the West Azerbaijan Province (northwestern Iran) to coordinate the guaranteed purchase of tomatoes and apples in the province.
According to the deputy minister, about 600,000 tons of tomatoes grown in Iran come from greenhouses.
Tahmasebi added that Iran grows more than 4 million tons of apples a year, and about 30 percent of it is grown in Iran's West Azerbaijan Province.
The chairman said that Iranian apples are mainly exported to the Eurasian Economic Union and Russia.
"As many as 700,000 tons of apples were exported from Iran in the last Iranian year (from March 21, 2019, to March 20, 2020). More than 50 percent of it belongs to the West Azerbaijan Province," he noted.
The deputy minister stressed that the government supports the guaranteed purchase of these products so that farmers do not suffer from falling prices.
Iran exported more than 3 million tons of agricultural goods worth $2.11 billion during the first five months of the current Iranian year (March 20-August 21, 2020). Iran's agricultural exports increased by 22.5 percent in terms of volume and 10.05 percent in terms of value compared to the same period last Iranian year.