Iran has plans to produce as much as 2.5 million tons of rice in the new calendar year which began on March 20, according to an official familiar with the matter.
Sohrab Sohrabi, an official with the Iranian Ministry of Agriculture who is in charge of the country’s wheat and rice plan, has said that in order to give a boost to domestic rice growing, Iran has begun supplying seeds and fertilizers among the farmers.
He however noted that due to limited water resources, the country has no plans to expand the area under rice cultivation in non-northern provinces.
Masih Keshavarz, the secretary of Iran’s Rice Exporters, Suppliers, and Importers Association, had earlier said that as much as 3.6 million tons of rice is annually consumed in Iran.
He noted that over 2 million tons of rice are produced by domestic farmers annually and between 1.2 and 1.5 million tons of the crop need to be imported into the country.