Mazandaran Province exported $170 million worth of goods in the first eight months of the current Iranian year (March 21-Nov. 21), registering a 50% rise compared with the corresponding period of last year, according to a local official.
“Non-oil products, including dairy products, citrus fruit, knowledge-based products and disposable kitchenware were the main products exported during the period,” Rahim Bakhshi was also quoted as saying by IRNA.
Iraq, Russia, Kazakhstan, Turkmenistan, Azerbaijan, Turkey, the UAE, Uzbekistan, Romania, Afghanistan and India were the main destinations.
The official noted that Mazandaran’s total exports stood at $179 million in the fiscal 2020-21 and increased to $278 million in the following year.
Mazandaran is located in northern Iran along the Caspian Sea coastlines.
The total commercial capacity of the ports of northern Mazandaran Province stands at 13 million tons, of which Amirabad accounts for 7.5 million tons, Noshahr 4.5 million tons and Fereydounkenar 1 million tons.
The province is a major producer and exporter of citrus fruit.
“At present, there are 500 sorting units with a capacity of handling 250,000 tons of citrus fruits, 119 cold storage facilities with a 473-ton capacity and 148 warehouse units with a capacity of 381 tons in the province. This has increased exports and has reduced the amount of fruit that perishes and goes to waste every year,” Had Izadi, a local official has been quoted as saying by IRNA.
Mazandaran’s citrus fruit orchards stretch across 112,000 hectares, of which 110,000 hectares are currently bearing fruit. Out of the total figure, close to 80,000 hectares and 30,000 hectares have undergone orange and tangerine cultivation while lemons, limes and bitter oranges are produced on the rest.
According to Hossein Negahdar, the deputy head of Mazandaran Agriculture Organization, the northern province accounts for around a quarter of Iran’s total employment in the agriculture sector.
Mazandaran Province cultivates 72 kinds of agricultural products, the annual yields of which amount to nearly 7 million tons. The province accounts for only 2.5% of Iran’s arable land, yet produces 7% and 11% of the country’s agricultural products in weight and value respectively per year.
According to Hosseinali Qovanlou, a local official, food industries account for 42% of the province’s production units.
With 150,000 hectares of orchards, Mazandaran is the top producer of horticultural products in Iran.
