Agriculture in Iran - Production and Consumption

Production and Consumption

See also: Demography of Iran and Iranian Economic Reform Plan

There are 22,000 food industries units in the country (2009). The capacity of these units has increased to 60 million tons from 8 million tons in the pre-Islamic Revolution era. Agricultural production stood at 108 million tons in 2008, which indicates a 20 million ton increase from 2007.

Per capita consumption (Source:EIU)	2009 est.	2010 est.
Meat consumption (kg per head)	27	27
Milk consumption (litres per head)	64	65
Fruit consumption (kg per head)	172	173
Vegetable consumption (kg per head)	184	186
Tea consumption (kg per head)	0.9	0.9

Iranian government policy aims to reach self-sufficiency in food production and by 2007, Iran had attained 96 percent self-sufficiency in essential agricultural products. But wastage in storing, processing, marketing and consumption of food products remained a concern.

The following is the Iranian out-put listed according to the largest global producer rankings in 2007:

World Ranking	Commodity;
1st	Pistachio, Berberis (Zereshk), Caviar, Saffron, Stone fruits, Berries
2nd	Dates, Apricots
3rd	Watermelons, Cherries, Cantaloupes & other melons, Apples, Figs, Gherkins
4th	Sheep Stocks (Flocks), Fresh Fruits, Quinces, Wool, Almonds, Walnuts
5th	Anise, Badian, Fennel, Corian, Chickpeas, Silk worm cocoons
6th	Hazelnut, Buffalo milk, Tomatoes
7th	Grapes, Onions, Sour cherries, Sheep milk, Kiwifruit
8th	Spices, Peach, Nectarines, Tangerine, Mandarin orange, Clementines, Lemons & Limes, Oranges, Goat milk, Pumpkins, Squash & Gourds
9th	Lentils
10th	Persimmons, Tea, Natural honey
11th	Hempseed
12th	Citrus fruits, Wheat, Plum and sloes
13th	Melon-seeds, Hen eggs, Eggplants (Aubergines)
14th	Sugar beet, Fresh vegetables, Barley, Potatoes
15th	Safflower seed, Artichoke

The following items are the most important agricultural commodities in Iran, listed by their international value in United States dollar in 2007:

Commodity;	International Value; x$1000	Quantity; Metric Tonnes
Cow milk	1,715,313	6,500,000
Grapes	1,391,700	2,900,000
Tomatoes	1,184,650	5,000,000
Wheat	1,169,603	15,000,000
Apples	764,005	2,660,000
Pistachios	760,184	230,000
Potatoes	729,601	4,500,000
Hen eggs	543,543	711,000
Rice	471,135	2,800,000
Oranges	404,202	2,300,000
Watermelons	344,091	3,300,000
Fresh Vegetables	328,387	1,750,000
Dates	313,470	1,000,000
Onions, Dry	313,293	1,700,000
Cucumbers and gherkins	290,146	1,720,000
Sugar beet	243,959	5,300,000
Fresh Fruit	223,314	1,400,000
Cantaloupes	218,091	1,230,000
Walnuts	208,506	170,000
Cherries	196,317	225,000