TEHRAN - Iran has purchased some 4.4 million tons of wheat at the worth of over $1.3 billion from domestic producers since April under the framework of a national plan that guarantees the purchase of domestic production of the crop.

Alireza Mohajer, a senior official with the Agricultural Ministry said on Sunday that the figure is 200,000 tons more than that of last year’s corresponding period.

He added that the government has paid over $500 million to the farmers and the rest sum will be gradually paid to them.

The official noted that the wheat harvest is underway in 25 provinces and will continue until late September.

The southwestern province of Khuzestan has been the number one province in the supply of wheat with 1.6 million tons of supply, followed by the provinces of Golestan, Fars, and Ilam which ranked second to fourth respectively, the official said, adding that with the beginning of harvest in the temperate provinces, the rankings will change, except for Khuzestan province which is expected to keep it first place.

Wheat production in Iran has increased by six percent in 2023, putting the Islamic Republic in 14th place among the world’s top producers of the strategic grain, according to the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA)’s World Agricultural Production report.

Based on the said report, Iranian farmers managed to produce 14 million tons of wheat in the 2023 crop year, 800,000 tons more than the figure for the previous year in which the total production stood at 13.2 million tons.

According to USDA, Iran was the world’s 13th largest wheat producer in 2022.

The department has also predicted that Iran will produce 14 million tons of wheat in 2024, which will not change compared to 2023.

The increase in Iran's wheat production during 2023 comes as the world's total wheat production this year has decreased by about seven million tons to reach 782 million tons.

According to this report, Iran, which is the 18th most populous country in the world, has produced more wheat than many countries including Brazil and Egypt.

EF/