Iran expects higher exports for subtropical fruits

An Iranian agriculture ministry official says the country is expecting to earn more from the exports of subtropical fruits in the year to late March amid rising demand for such crops during the coronavirus pandemic.

Zahra Jalili Moghaddam said on Thursday that subtropical fruit exports had earned Iran nearly $0.5 million in the last calendar year ending March 2020.

Jalili Moghaddam said, however, that export volume have been increasing this calendar year as demand keeps surging for fruits rich in vitamin C like citrus crops and pomegranate that many believe can lower the risk of infection to coronavirus.

She said exports of subtropical fruits from Iran in the last calendar year had amounted to 0.612 million metric tons.

The official said tropical and subtropical fruits account for 38 percent of the entire fruit production in Iran with nearly 8.6 million tons harvested from 738,000 hectares of lands over the past calendar year.

Jalili Moghaddam said Iran is currently the world’s second largest producer of date, adding that the country ranks third and fourth in the world in terms of pomegranate and kiwi fruit production, respectively.

The southern province of Fars is the largest producer of subtropical fruits in Iran with vast lands dedicated to rainfed farming of various types of figs and pomegranates.

Iran’s agriculture sector has experienced a strong growth in recent years as better yields and increased government support for exports have encouraged more activity across the sector.

The government continues to rely on the sector as a main a source of earning hard currency as normal crude sales have dropped due to American sanctions and lower global demand for fuels during the pandemic.