More than 60,000 tons of bananas have been harvested in the southeastern Sistan-Baluchestan Province so far in the current fiscal year (started March 20), according to a local official, Ardeshir Shahraki.
“There are close to 5,000 hectares of banana plantations in Sistan-Baluchestan, more than 3,000 hectares of which currently bear fruit. The province is Iran’s banana production hub,” he was quoted as saying by IRNA.
The Agriculture Ministry official said it is estimated that a total of 150,000 tons of bananas will be produced in the province this year.
“Chabahar, Konarak and Sarbaz counties account for the lion’s share of the province’s banana yield.”
Mohammad Ali Tahmasebi, deputy agriculture minister for horticultural affairs, told Mehr News Agency that the government plans to expand Sistan-Baluchestan’s banana plantations by 2,000 hectares in cooperation with the private sector.
“Modern technology will be used in the new plantations to increase yield and quality,” he said.
Sistan-Baluchestan’s tropical climate enables the province to produce banana, mango, papaya, guava and coconut, in addition to watermelon, pomegranate, olive and citrus fruits. Harvest takes place twice a year for most of these fruits.
A total of 173,062 tons of bananas worth $113.68 million were imported into Iran during the first four months of the current Iranian year (March 20-July 21).
According to Spokesman of the Islamic Republic of Iran Customs Administration Rouhollah Latifi, imports mainly arrived from Ecuador, India, Philippines, Turkey, Russia, Vietnam and the UAE, Mehr News Agency reported.
Zahra Jalili-Moqaddam, director general of Agriculture Ministry’s Tropical and Subtropical Fruit Bureau, says an average of 450,000 tons of bananas are imported into Iran annually while domestic production of the fruit stands at around 120,000 tons per annum.
According to the official, the domestic production capacity for bananas as well as other tropical fruits is higher than the current levels.
“The Agriculture Ministry is prepared to grant incentives, banking facilities and subsidies to encourage farmers in producing these fruits,” she said.
