Iran imported nearly 14,000 tons of fish food valued at $37.9 million in the first quarter of the current Iranian year, according to the director general of the Iranian Ministry of Agriculture’s Office of Quality Improvement, Processing, and Aquatic Market.

Despite this, the country's fishery exports surged by over 30% during the same period, reaching $121.4 million, Abbas Mokhtari added.

The volume of fish exports also increased by over 40% compared to the previous year, with a total of 73,369 tons shipped abroad.

This follows a trend of growth in the fishery sector, with overall exports exceeding $310 million in the previous Iranian year.