Iran’s Agriculture Ministry says it is expecting wheat production to exceed 14 million tons this year.
According to the data released by the ministry, demand for wheat in Iran currently amounts to 12 million tons per year.
Wheat is cultivated across 6.2 million hectares in Iran in the fiscal 2020-21, Ataollah Hashemi, the head of National Wheat Farmers Foundation said.
Close to 2 million hectares of wheat farms (one-third) are irrigated and over 4 million hectares (two-thirds) are rain-fed.
Farmers say the lushness of rain-fed wheat produced this year is similar to crops grown in irrigation systems.
Iran’s silo capacity reaches 21m tons
Iran’s storage capacity for strategic goods and grains has reached 21 million tons, says an official with Government Trading Corporation of Iran, a subsidiary of Agriculture Ministry.
“The capacity of government-owned storage units stands at 5.5 million tons with 156 silos, mechanized or semi-mechanized storehouses and simple warehouses and that of private-owned units hovers around 15.5 million tons with 600 cement and metal silos, as well as mechanized storehouses,” Qodrat Heydari was also quoted as saying by IRNA.
“The government has no worries about food security, particularly regarding wheat. However, we welcome investment in sectors that need it most.”