Some 2,500 tons of unshelled walnuts valued at $16.7 million were exported in the first five months of the current Iranian year (started March 21), which shows a 15-fold hike in volume and a ninefold increase in value compared to the similar period of last year, despite a price decline from $11.4 to $6.7 per kilo in the past months, ISNA reported on Saturday. During the five-month period, Turkey was the biggest customer of Iranian walnut followed by Azerbaijan, Germany, the UAE, Bahrain, Iraq, Kazakhstan, Qatar, Kuwait and Vietnam. The increase in exports comes at a time when farmers are facing challenges caused by last winter’s frostbite, heavy summer rain and pests.
