Tehran - Iran is projected to produce between 350,000 and 400,000 tons of oilseeds in the current crop year (1404–1405), despite persistent drought conditions and increasing climate-related risks, a senior official at the Ministry of Agriculture announced.

 

Sa’adollah Mansouri, acting head of the Cotton and Oilseeds Department, said that assessments of Iran’s climatic conditions and its available water and soil resources suggest the country has the capacity to achieve 40 percent self-sufficiency in edible oil production within the next decade.

 

He added that under Iran’s Seventh National Development Plan, the government has set a target of 20 percent self-sufficiency in the production of edible oil and oilseed meal.

 

Outlining the ministry’s support measures, Mansouri pointed to efforts to strengthen capable and knowledge-based domestic companies involved in oilseed seed production, with the aim of reinforcing self-reliance across the oilseed value chain and reducing dependence on imported seeds.

 

“Other initiatives include expanding contract farming of oilseed crops in cooperation with the private sector by covering part of production costs through existing incentives, and promoting the cultivation of low water–demand crops such as camelina and safflower in rotation with rain-fed autumn cereals.”

 

The initiatives are designed to curb imports, enhance domestic production capacity, and improve the resilience of Iran’s agricultural sector in the face of ongoing climatic challenges.