Iraq expects to harvest from 4 million to 4.5 millions tons of domestically-grown wheat to help the nation achieve self-sufficiency this year in its supply of the crop, Agriculture Minister Abbas Jabur said.
(Bloomberg) — Iraq expects to harvest from 4 million to 4.5 millions tons of domestically-grown wheat to help the nation achieve self-sufficiency this year in its supply of the crop, Agriculture Minister Abbas Jabur said.
The ministry will increase the acreage area planted for wheat for the next growing season, scheduled to start in October, by using the latest irrigation technologies, Jabur said at an event in Baghdad. Officials are working to collect all wheat grown by local farmers to boost the national grain reserve, he said.
The government runs a subsidy program that distributes 4.6 million tons of the crop a year. As part of the program, it buys local wheat at almost double the global price as a way to encourage domestic farmers to produce more.
Iraq last year ordered the purchase of 1 million tons of wheat to make up for a production shortfall. Its output is highly dependent on rain and water flow from the Tigris and Euphrates rivers.
In recent years, the country has purchased wheat from the US, Australia and Canada.
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