Major surge in Iran domestic wheat purchases

Iran has reported a major surge in domestic wheat purchases,
risen by 37% in the harvest period between April and early August compared to
the same period last year, an official with the Ministry of Agriculture said.

Deputy Ministry of Agriculture for Arable Farming Mohajer
said on Monday that the government had purchased more than 9 million metric
tons (mt) of wheat from domestic farmers since April.

He stated that the figure was an increase of more than 104%
compared to April-August 2021, adding that an increase in dry-land farming
activity was a major factor in promising yields of the crop in Iran this year.

CEO of Government Trading Corporation (GTC), a subsidiary of
the Ministry of Agriculture responsible for supply of staple grains in Iran,
said on Monday that wheat purchases in some provinces in the country had nearly
doubled this year compared to last year, Press TV reported.

Saeid Raad pointed out that southern provinces of Khuzestan
and Fars were the largest suppliers of wheat in Iran this year by delivering
1.72 million mt and nearly 1 million mt of wheat to GTC silos, respectively.

Raad said the value of wheat purchased from Iranian farmers
since April had exceeded 1,340 trillion rials ($268 million), adding that up to
70% of the payments to wheat farmers in the country had already been settled.

The domestic wheat purchase figure announced by the Ministry
of Agriculture on Monday is 1 million mt above what had been anticipated in
government forecasts announced earlier this year.

Experts say a favorable price of 150,000 rials ($0.3) per
kilogram offered for wheat under government’s guaranteed purchase program has
been a major factor in promising purchases this year.

Estimates suggest that total wheat output in Iran could
reach 14.5 million mt this year, up from 13.2 million mt reported in 2022.