Close to 1,000 metric tons of pistachio, valued at $12 million, has been exported via Semnan customs to Persian Gulf countries, Iraq, Afghanistan and Russia during the past Iranian calendar year (ended March 20), a senior official at Damghan Agricultural Jihad Office, Esmaeel Shokatabadi, said on Monday this week. “Last Year, pistachio farmers in Damghan [a city in Semnan Province] earned nearly 5 trillion rials ($178 million at the official exchange rate) by selling their products, and over 5,000 people were directly or indirectly engaged in pistachio business last year,” he was quoted by Mehr news agency as saying. More than 235,000 tons of pistachio was reportedly produced last year across the country, recording an increase of nearly 17% compared with the preceding year.
