Members of the parliament require the Plan and Budget Organization of Iran to finance air freight exports of fresh fruit and agricultural products by extending fuel subsidy as per the next year’s budget bill.
The measure is aimed at boosting agricultural exports to the neighboring countries and member states of the Eurasian Economic Union in particular, Otaghiranonline.ir reported.
Iran exported 6.12 million tons of agricultural and food products worth $6 billion during the first three quarters of the current fiscal year (March 20-Dec. 20, 2020).
The figures indicate a respective rise of 22.65% and 48.27% in tonnage and value compared with last year’s corresponding period, the Agriculture Ministry’s website reported.
Fresh and dried pistachio topped the list of exports in terms of value, as the country exported $1.05 billion worth of the crop from Q1 to Q3.
Tomato was the second major agricultural export product in terms of value with $630.6 million, followed by apple with $272.98 million, onion and shallot with $265.15 million and grapes with $217.84 million.
In terms of tonnage, tomato topped the list with 758,790 tons, followed by watermelon with 639,980 tons, potato with 554,530 tons, apples with 379,120 tons and onion and shallot with 373,250 tons.
Agronomical products accounted for 3.912 million tons worth $2.32 billion of total exports, up 16.54% in terms of tonnage and 45.03% in terms of value year-on-year.
Horticultural exports stood at 1.58 million tons worth $2.74 billion, up 46.21% and 58.417% in tonnage and value respectively YOY.
Exports of livestock and poultry products stood at 524.83 tons worth $770.43 million, up 18.57% in tonnage and 37.39% in value YOY.
The veterinary sector exported 588 tons of products worth $5.54 million, up 163.68% and 314.03% in tonnage and value respectively YOY.
The fisheries sector exported 81,400 tons worth $207.93 million, posting a decline of 8.26% in tonnage and an increase of 18.14% in value respectively YOY.
Exports from the forest and rangeland sector hit 6,121 tons worth $22.20 million, down 16.41% and 4.8% in tonnage and value respectively YOY.
Data released by the Agriculture Ministry show Iran exported 7.1 million tons of agricultural and food products worth over $5.82 billion in the last fiscal year that ended on March 19, 2020, to register a 2.34% rise in tonnage and 8.93% decline in value compared to the year before.
Out of nearly 18 million hectares of Iran's farmlands, 12 million hectares are rain-fed. The impact of rainfalls is more significant in arid areas in the central, southern, eastern and southeastern regions struggling for long with water shortages, drought and extended dry seasons since most of their farms are rain-fed.
“Iran’s output of agricultural products is expected to reach 128 million tons by the end of the current fiscal year [March 20, 2021],” says Shahrokh Shajari, director general of Agriculture Ministry's Export Promotion Bureau.
According to Agriculture Minister Kazem Khavazi, over 4.3 million farmers in Iran produce 124 million tons of agricultural products per year on 18.5 million hectares.
Agronomical products, he added, account for over 83.5 million tons of the total volume.
According to the minister, Iran possesses 14.3 million hectares of forests, 84 million hectares of pastures, 2.7 million hectares of woodland and 32.6 million hectares of deserts.
Notably, agricultural products constitute most of Iran’s exports to the EEU.
Iran and the Eurasian Economic Union signed a three-year provisional agreement in Astana, Kazakhstan, on May 17, 2018, for the bloc to welcome Iran into EEU. The arrangement, which lowers or abolishes customs duties, is the first step toward implementing free trade between Iran and the five members of the union.
The average tariff set by the Eurasian Economic Union on Iranian goods as part of a preferential trade agreement stands at 3.1%, while the figure is 12.9% for EEU goods exported to Iran.
Iran and EEU have listed 862 types of commodities in their three-year provisional trade agreement. As per the deal, Iran will enjoy easier export terms and lower customs duties on 502 items and the same goes for 360 items from the EEU member states. EEU removed tariffs on imports of 11 Iranian agricultural and food products in April. It conveyed the decision to the Trade Promotion Organization of Iran in an official letter.
“These goods that can, from now on, be exported at a zero tariff include potato, onion, garlic, cabbage, carrot, chili, wheat, grains, rice and ready-to-eat meals for kids. The measure taken by EEU in these difficult times when the country is battling the Covid-19 crisis, in addition to economic sanctions, can help boost our production and exports,” Reza Nourani, the head of Iran’s National Association for Agricultural Products, was quoted as saying by Fars News Agency.
The Eurasian Economic Union member states include Russia, Kazakhstan, Armenia, Belarus and Kyrgyzstan. The bloc was created partly in response to the economic and political influence of the European Union and other western countries.
Key objectives of EEU include increasing cooperation and economic competitiveness for member states, and the promotion of stable development to raise their standards of living.
