Olive production in Iran is estimated to reach 85,000 tons of by the end of the current Iranian year (March 20, 2019) to register a 6% increase compared with the year before, according to the executer of the Ministry of Agriculture’s “Olive Project”.
“We will be producing 5,000-5,500 tons of olive oil this year,” Rahmatollah Parichehr was quoted as saying by the Young Journalists Club, adding that most of the yield will go to the production of olive conserves, since the domestic demand for this product is higher in the country.
Iran has around 84,000 hectares of olive orchards, which have created more than 300,000 direct and indirect jobs.
The main olive production hubs in Iran are the provinces of Gilan, Qazvin, Zanjan, Fars and Markazi.
The country is ranked 14th by the International Olive Council in terms of area under olive cultivation and 17th in terms of production, Mahmoud Emami, the Agriculture Ministry’s head of Expansion and Improvement of Olive Orchards Group, told Financial Tribune last year.
“The quality of Iran’s olive and olive oil is unrivaled, owing to the country’s distinctive climate. Olive tree is subtropical and so are most regions in Iran. Olive trees are exposed to direct sunlight for a prolonged period of time here, which is considered a comparative advantage for olives cultivated in our country,” he said.
Per capita annual olive conserve and olive oil consumption in Iran, according to Emami, stand at 850 grams and 140 grams, whereas the global average is 360 grams and 430 grams respectively.
