Date production increases during the current season, Ministry of Agriculture

INA - BAGHDAD

Iraqi Ministry of Agriculture announced, on Saturday, an increase in date production during the current season.

"The date season has not ended yet, and estimates will appear around the amount of date production for this season, but according to the available data, the current season's production is better than the production of the past two years," said the ministry's spokesman, Muhammed Al-Khazaali, to the Iraqi News Agency - INA.

Al-Khazaali added that "the quantities of dates exported outside Iraq for the year 2022 amounted to more than 650 thousand tons, while last year 2023 the quantities of dates exported were around 725 thousand tons."

"The increase in the quantities of dates exported outside Iraq annually indicates an increase in date production, in light of the agricultural investment projects in the governorates of Muthanna and Karbala as well as several other governorates," he added.

He concluded by saying, "I expect that this year will also witness an increase in production exceeding last year's production." 

Earlier, the Ministry of Agriculture confirmed the success of planting more than two million palm trees during the current government’s term and indicated that the palm cultivation project has turned into a successful project after decades of losses, with annual exports exceeding 650 thousand tons, revealing a plan to increase the number of palm trees and plant rare varieties.