The Ministry of Agriculture of Iran has confirmed the ban on the importation of fruit into the country; exempting only four fruits which are not produced domestically: bananas, mangos, pineapples and coconuts.
Speaking at the “Green Iran” expo the Deputy Minister of Agriculture, Mohammad Ali Tahmasebi, supported the policy of banning the importation of fruit and said: “This policy led to the exportation of 250,000 tons of Iranian apples last year.”
Mr Tahmasebi added that one of the priorities of the Government in the twenty-year outlook plan is the expansion of greenhouses. This year there are plans to add 500,000 hectares of greenhouses to the country.
Mr. Tahmasebi mentioned recent sanctions, transferring greenhouse policies to provincial authorities and taxes on greenhouses as roadblocks in the way of developing greenhouses.
The cultivation of medicinal plants for which Iran has aptitude is another of the Ministry’s projects which will be carried out oرutside of forest areas.
Mr. Tahmasebi explained: “Expanding the cultivation of medicinal and fruit bearing plants such as grapes and almonds has been emphasized in the sixth plan and 500 hectares of low-yield steep lands have been assigned for this purpose. The cultivation of such plans will protect the soil against flash foods.”
Iran is the largest producer of fruit in Middle East and based on the official reports released by the Ministry of Agriculture, annually more than 19 million tons of fruit are produced in an area of 2.3 million hectares of gardens.
