IRAQ | Agriculture Sector

[Ali - Iraq]

Iraq seeks to increase wheat production
ECONOMY | 2012-11-30
The Iraqi Ministry of Agriculture last week began planting new fields with wheat under a national programme that aims increase the productivity of this strategic crop within the next 10 years.

Among other activities, this programme helps supply farmers with seeds, fertilisers and agricultural equipment, and introduces farming methods and varieties intended to increase crop yield, ministry spokesperson Kareem al-Tamimi told Mawtani.

Farmers are planting new high-yield varieties and others that are saline- and drought-resistant, and officials are studying their vulnerability to agricultural pests and diseases, al-Tamimi said.

By establishing field schools for farmers, the ministry also is providing field training on modern wheat-production techniques and how to use water resources optimally, he said.

"Thanks to the support the ministry gave the farmers [through this programme], wheat production began following an upward trajectory, as we were able during the last agricultural season to raise the per capita output in some areas to more than one tonne per dunam," al-Tamimi said, adding that now, around 60% of the country's demand for wheat is being met.

WORKING SIDE-BY-SIDE
The overall production of wheat in Iraq rose from less than 1.5 million tonnes in previous seasons to about 2 million tonnes this season, according to al-Tamimi.

Iraq will need to produce about 3 million tonnes a year to achieve self-sufficiency -- one of the programme goals -- and will afterwards have the capacity to export the crop, he said.

"Our programme aims to raise the annual production rate of wheat from 400 to 800 kilogrammes per dunam," said Dr. Abdul Kareem Hamad Hassan, the programme's executive director. "It also aims at increasing the total areas planted with wheat."

Last season, he told Mawtani, farmers planted an additional 130,000 dunams of wheat in five provinces: Wasit, Diwaniyah, Kirkuk, Mosul and Anbar. This season, planted areas expanded to a total area of 630,000 dunams, with two additional provinces, Salaheddine and Muthanna, taking part in the programme.

"In each agricultural season, we shall try to increase those areas by about 500,000 dunams, so that by the tenth year of the programme, we [will be planting] about 5 million dunams in all the provinces to attain self-sufficiency and return Iraq to its previous status as wheat exporter, like it used to be in the 1950s," Hassan said.

"The programme's experts are now working side-by-side with farmers, giving them advice and instructions on how to plant their land," he said, adding that the ministry is also working on providing participating farmers with fertilisers and pesticides free of charge.

"In previous years, Iraq used to suffer from low productivity rates of wheat per dunam due to lack and misuse of water resources and because of the weak support provided by the government," said Adel al-Mukhtar, adviser to the parliament's water and agriculture committee.

But since implementing the wheat development programme, when officials introduced farmers to modern irrigation techniques, supported them with fertilisers and seeds, and increased the number of planted areas, "productivity started to go up", he said.

[Sinjar]

Iraq should be capable to be self sufficient in many agriculture areas.

[Al-Hashimi]

الأنبار تباشر بتنفيذ مشروع الاستفادة من مياه الأمطار والمياه الجوفية

2012-12-07 سيف أحمد من الأنبار

باشر مجلس محافظة الأنبار الأسبوع الماضي بتنفيذ مشروع كبير للاستفادة من مياه الأمطار التي تتساقط في فصل الشتاء الحالي للحد من نقص المياه وظاهرة التصحر في المحافظة، بحسب مسؤولين.

وقال الدكتور جاسم الحلبوسي، رئيس مجلس محافظة الأنبار، في حديث لموطني إن مجموعة شركات حكومية ومحلية مختصة باشرت بمشروع الاستفادة من مياه الأمطار التي تتجمع في السهول والوديان في المحافظة.

وأوضح أن المشروع يتضمن إنشاء ثلاث بحيرات اصطناعية، مساحة كل واحدة منها تسعة كيلومتر مربع موزعة في مناطق القائم وصحراء الرحالية وهيت وناحية الصقلاوية لجمع المياه فيها.

وتابع "كما يتضمن المشروع إنشاء سبعة خزانات واسعة بمناطق مختلفة من اقضية ونواحي الأنبار، مع التركيز على المناطق الصحراوية والزراعية، وذلك لتوفير كميات من مياه السقي للمزروعات ولحقول الأغنام والماشية".

وأكد أن المشروع "يهدف إلى الاستفادة من مياه الأمطار والمياه الجوفية وعدم هدر الثروة الطبيعية التي تتكون من ظروف مناخية جيدة في فصل الشتاء، للحد من نقص المياه وتوفير خزين كبير لفصل الصيف القادم".

من جهته، قال المهندس عبير كاظم، المشرف على إنجاز مشاريع المنطقة الغربية من دائرة الزراعة في الأنبار، إن "المشروع يتضمن إنشاء أنهر ومبازل تنقل المياه المجمعة لتصب في البحيرات الاصطناعية، إضافة إلى هدم وطمر الأنهر غير المفيدة والتي تشكل هدرا للثروة المائية".

وأضاف كاظم في حديث لموطني أن "المياه التي سيتم جمعها ستصرف بطرق مدروسة يحسب فيها الكميات التي تتبخر جراء الظروف الطبيعية ومعدل حاجة كل منطقة زراعية وواحات رعي الاغنام، لضمان ديمومة المياه دون انقطاع ليكون المشروع من أهم الخطوات العلمية للحد من نقص المياه والقضاء على ظاهرة التصحر في مدن الأنبار".

وأوضح كاظم "سيتم تنفيذ ثلاثة خطوط من الأشجار حول المناطق الصحراوية الواسعة في الأنبار من نباتات وأشجار دائمة الخضرة وأخرى تقاوم ظروف الطبيعية تسقى من مياه يتم جمعها من الامطار المتساقطة والمياه الجوفية لتكون مصد طبيعي للعواصف الترابية وتحد من حركة الرمال المتحركة".

استصلاح أراضي صحراوية

بدوره، قال المهندس بركات جابر، المسؤول على متابعة المشروع، لموطني "تم تكريس كافة الجهود وتوفير المستلزمات والدعم المادي واللوجستي للشركات المنفذة والمؤسسات الساندة لإنجاح المشروع وإنجازه في مدة أقل من ثلاثة أشهر".

وأكد أن "المشروع سيشمل إنشاء 13 محطة لتحلية المياه في المناطق الصحراوية والزراعية لسد أي نقص في مياه الشرب بمدن الأنبار"، مضيفا أن "هذه المحطات ستعمل بالطاقة الشمسية". وأشار إلى أنه يشمل أيضا "استصلاح أكثر من 7193 دونما من المناطق القريبة من أقضية ونواحي الأنبار للحد من ظاهرة التصحر والكثبان الرملية في فصول الصيف".

ولفت إلى أنه سيتم دراسة واقع الحال والظروف التي قد تظهر حاجة لإضافة مشروع جديد.

http://mawtani.al-shorfa.com/ar/arti...ge_locale=true

The last and bold part is the most interesting one.

[Sinjar]

Romanian wheat cheapest in Iraq's 350,000 T wheat buy

Tuesday, 11 December 2012 14:06 Posted by Asad Naeem

HAMBURG: Romanian wheat was cheapest in the 350,000 tonne purchase of Romanian and Australian wheat in an international tender from Iraq's state grains board reported on Monday, European traders said on Tuesday.

Traders said 50,000 tonnes of Romanian wheat was purchased at $404 a tonne CIF free out.

Of the Australian wheat, some 50,000 tonnes was bought at $413.50 a tonne CFR free out, 100,000 tonnes at $409.47 a tonne CFR free out and 150,000 tonnes at $407.00 CIF free out, traders said.

Other trade sources said that the 50,000 tonne Australian consignment may have been priced at $409.10 a tonne CIF liner out.

Free out and liner out terms have differing provisions for the cost of ship unloading.

Copyright Reuters, 2012

[josef hadi]

علن رئيس لجنة الصحة والبيئة في مجلس محافظة ميسان ميثم لفته الفرطوسي عن تحويل أراض كانت صحراوية قاحلة إلى أراض زراعية من قبل آمر اللواء الواحد والأربعين العميد الركن ستار جبار كاظم الغزي وبالتعاون مع لجنة الصحة والبيئة في مجلس المحافظة.

وقال الفرطوسي في بيان صحفي تلقت وكالة {الفرات نيوز} نسخة منه اليوم الاحد ان "الشعور بالبيئة الصحية ثقافة يجب أن يمتلكها الجميع وان هذا العمل هو تطبيق واقعي لتحسين البيئة حيث قام هذا القائد العسكري بزراعة أكثر من {100 دونم} من الأراضي المحيطة بمقره من محصول الحنطة والشعير وكذلك تشجير المنطقة بعدة أنواع من الشُجيرات تتجاوز الـ1500 نبتة وعمل بحيرات صناعية لتربية الأسماك".

ودعا كل الجهات و مدراء الدوائر والموطنين الى "تشجير الأراضي التي يعملون أو التي يسكنون فيها سواء في داخل أو خارج المدن لما تضيفه هذه العملية من تحسين وتلطيف للأجواء وجمالية المناطق وكذلك ادعو وزارتي الزراعة والبيئة الى تطبيق مشروع الحزام الأخضر والذي يُحيط بالمحافظة ويمنع عنها العواصف الترابية وخاصة في فصل الربيع والصيف ولو بشكل نسبي".

يذكر إن درجات الحرارة تزايدت بشكل ملحوظ في الأعوام الأخيرة وذلك بسبب التصحر الكبير الذي غزا البلاد.http://www.wasat.info/news.php?action=view&id=4412

[Ali - Iraq]

While they might not completely satisfy the Middle East vegetarian, Iraq’s Kurds have found a lucrative new way to cash in on year-round crops, which require no chemicals or pesticides: they have turned to mushroom farming, reports the local paper rudaw.

In the Kurdistan region of Iraq vegetarians could only get natural mushrooms in the spring. Now the locals are excited: Mariwan Ali, who advocates a vegetarian diet, according to the paper, has an easy answer for those who ask him, if we don’t eat meat, what should we eat? “Eat mushrooms,” he says. “Mushrooms compensate for meat.”

Local growers are also interested in opening mushroom restaurants to help cultivate a taste for the food which is still considered relatively exotic in Iraq.

The whole business of mushroom farming in Iraq hit the news last year when the Iraq Business newspaper reported the country’s first mushroom farm in Mosul. They grow wild in Iran, but are still considered an exotic food. The farm was first started in 2009 by Majeed Hamid Sallal and located in Ras al-Jadda neighborhood of the northern Iraqi city and it is considered one of the country’s most innovative agricultural projects.

“But growing mushrooms requires special conditions,” he told the business newspaper. “And for these reasons they thought that my project would fail. Nobody encouraged me to carry on.”

Following international standards for growing white mushrooms, he first studied the growing techniques in Aleppo, Syria where mushrooms have been growing successfully. Although mushrooms require no pesticides to grow, they do need to be sterilized to avoid harmful bacteria that might be lurking in the compost.

And what is particularly special about Sallal’s mushroom project is that it’s one hundred percent local – except for the seeds which are bought internationally. Most Middle Eastern countries rely on international aid and expertise for novel agriculture projects these days.

Located in Ninewa, Iraw’s wheat and barley producing region, the region is also known as Nineveh, a city mentioned in the Bible – where Jonah was to go and make people repent. This was after escaping the mouth of the whale. (magic truffles anyone?)

This place may seem magical in many ways and with water shortages, mushroom farming may be the future of this biblical region. Plus mushrooms are a great source of vitamin D.

Mushroom farm in China via Ivan Walsh

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[haiderpass]

Originally Posted by Ali - Iraq

While they might not completely satisfy the Middle East vegetarian, Iraq’s Kurds have found a lucrative new way to cash in on year-round crops, which require no chemicals or pesticides: they have turned to mushroom farming, reports the local paper rudaw.

In the Kurdistan region of Iraq vegetarians could only get natural mushrooms in the spring. Now the locals are excited: Mariwan Ali, who advocates a vegetarian diet, according to the paper, has an easy answer for those who ask him, if we don’t eat meat, what should we eat? “Eat mushrooms,” he says. “Mushrooms compensate for meat.”

Local growers are also interested in opening mushroom restaurants to help cultivate a taste for the food which is still considered relatively exotic in Iraq.

The whole business of mushroom farming in Iraq hit the news last year when the Iraq Business newspaper reported the country’s first mushroom farm in Mosul. They grow wild in Iran, but are still considered an exotic food. The farm was first started in 2009 by Majeed Hamid Sallal and located in Ras al-Jadda neighborhood of the northern Iraqi city and it is considered one of the country’s most innovative agricultural projects.

“But growing mushrooms requires special conditions,” he told the business newspaper. “And for these reasons they thought that my project would fail. Nobody encouraged me to carry on.”

Following international standards for growing white mushrooms, he first studied the growing techniques in Aleppo, Syria where mushrooms have been growing successfully. Although mushrooms require no pesticides to grow, they do need to be sterilized to avoid harmful bacteria that might be lurking in the compost.

And what is particularly special about Sallal’s mushroom project is that it’s one hundred percent local – except for the seeds which are bought internationally. Most Middle Eastern countries rely on international aid and expertise for novel agriculture projects these days.

Located in Ninewa, Iraw’s wheat and barley producing region, the region is also known as Nineveh, a city mentioned in the Bible – where Jonah was to go and make people repent. This was after escaping the mouth of the whale. (magic truffles anyone?)

This place may seem magical in many ways and with water shortages, mushroom farming may be the future of this biblical region. Plus mushrooms are a great source of vitamin D.

lol, but nice article.

[Ali - Iraq]

Iraq needs $ 20 billion to upgrade agriculture, says MP
Added by Baghdad Iraq on January 5, 2013.
Saved under Business & Iraqi Dinar
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Baghdad (IraqiNews.com) -The Parliamentary Agriculture Committee announced that Iraq needs more than $ 20 billion to upgrade the agricultural sector.

Member of the Committee, Kadhim al-Bahadili, stated to Iraqi News (IraqiNews.com) “The deliberate negligence by the former regime to the agricultural sector caused major desertification for many lands and obliged 80% of the farmers to abandon their agrarian lands and move to cities, so it is very difficult that the current government could improve this sector within a limited period.”

“The available financial allocations for the agrarian sector are not enough where we need more than $ 20 billion to rehabilitate the agriculture and do the reclamation,” he added noting that “The pending Late Payment Law has allocated $ 18 billion to develop the agricultural posture.”

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[Ali - Iraq]

Iraq seeks India's agricultural expertise
New Delhi,Business/Economy,Science/Tech, Wed, 16 Jan 2013IANS



inShare


New Delhi, Jan 16 (IANS) Iraqis will travel to India from April to get trained in irrigation and land reclamation.
The first batch of over 500 Iraqis will learn how to boost agricultural production and reduce their country's dependence on imports, which account for 90 percent of its food requirement.
"Iraq has sought India's assistance for training in irrigation, agriculture and land reclamation," J.S. Samra, chief executive officer of the National Rainfed Area Authority, told IANS.
"Iraq was self-sufficient in food in 1950 but in 2010 it imported about 90 percent of its requirements at a cost of $12 billion, which is 13 percent of its annual budget.
"India used to import about 10 million tonnes of wheat annually in the 1960s, and now exports 11 million tonnes foodgrain," Samra said.
He said Iraq had the potential to become self-sufficient in meeting its food needs.
According to him, inadequate water management was a reason for an average import of five million tonnes of wheat per year by Iraq.
Samra said the UN's food sanctions against Iraq in 1990 prohibited foreign investment in agriculture. The oil-for-food programme stipulated that food imports could only be made against oil export by Iraq.
Iraq's cultivable land at 11.5 million hectare comprises 26 percent of its geographical area.
"Only half of Iraq's cultivable land is cultivated," Samra said, adding that irrigation was critical in low rainfall countries like Iraq.
Samra said irrigation in Iraq suffers from damaged infrastructure, water logging and building up of salt in the soil. It needs investment for drainage to reclaim saline soil.
"Agriculture productivity in Iraq is half of neighbouring countries. There is a need to revitalise and remodel investments in rural development," Samra added.
"Lining of irrigation system, pipes, sprinkles and drip system would require massive investments."
Samra, also an agriculture scientist, also said that Iraq needed watershed development in hilly areas and rainwater conservation.
"Storage in small dams can enhance production. Diversification to horticulture can enhance incomes. India has vast experience (in these areas)."
Iraq once had one of the oldest irrigation systems in the world and was known for food production.
Indian farm machinery, veterinary services and fisheries technology would also be relevant to Iraq due to similar socio-economic conditions.
Samra said protected cultivation of fresh food around urban centres can enhance productivity and provide off-season supply of vegetables and fruits.
(Prashant Sood can be contacted at prashant.s@ians.in)

[Ali - Iraq]

Categorized | Agriculture
Iraq On Track for Big Wheat Crop
Posted on 18 January 2013. Tags: food security, Irrigation, John Schnittker, Water, Wheat

By John Schnittker, Agricultural Economist and Ministry Advisor at the US Embassy in Baghdad.
Iraq’s 2013 winter grain prospects appear to be good to excellent condition at this time. Late fall and early winter rains as well as irrigation supplies have been adequate to support increased plantings and good early growth of the critical wheat and barley crops. Satellite imagery and field reports also indicate a positive outlook from the principal growing provinces.
However, as harvest is still four months away, and with the bulk of the wheat and barley crops water requirements yet to be met, it is premature for Iraq to assume a bin busting crop. But the good condition of the crop and adequate soil moisture supplies have created the potential for Iraq’s best wheat and barley crops in many years.
Spring rains and irrigation water availability will ultimately determine if this year’s crop is a success. Irrigation water management during March and April will be especially important. A successful harvest is especially needed across the North where short crops and outright crop failures in recent years have seriously hurt the agricultural sector.
The northern provinces of Iraq and Kurdistan are heavily dependent upon winter rains, putting crop production in these areas at the mercy of mother-nature, while the remainder of Iraq is primarily irrigated.
Iraq’s irrigation water supplies for both the winter grain crop and spring and summer crops such as corn and rice are heavily dependent upon winter rain and snow that falls across Eastern Turkey; to date precipitation across this region has been somewhat spotty. However, there is still time for heavy widespread precipitation to fall before winter and spring storm systems disappear in mid to late April.
Fair weather is in the forecast for Iraq over the next 7-10 days, but after that the long-range weather models suggest a stormy period around the end of the month.
A bumper crop in 2013 could result in as much as an additional $250 million in farm receipts flowing through the rural economy. Farm income could also see a sharp increase, setting the stage for new investments in farm machinery and irrigation equipment. Politically, a big crop would increase stability in rural areas as increased crop receipts move through the rural economy, creating new jobs and giving credence that Iraq is meeting its ambitions to become more self-sufficient in food.

[Ali - Iraq]

US, Iraq to Improve Iraqi Agriculture
Posted on 21 January 2013. Tags: United States Agency for International Development, USAID

The U.S. Embassy, through the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), and the Iraqi Ministry of Agriculture (MOA), met from January 15 to January 17 to help Iraq improve its agricultural sector through the U.S.-funded Harmonized Support for Agricultural Development (HSAD) project.
This project will improve agricultural investment opportunities and efficiency and introduce modern farming technologies and practices to help Iraqi agribusinesses become more productive and competitive.
The event was attended by Senior Deputy Minister of Agriculture, Dr. Subhi al-Jumaily, other GOI officials, representatives from Iraq’s agricultural colleges, and USAID Mission Director to Iraq Thomas Staal. Mr. al-Jumaily expressed his enthusiasm for the new project, stating, “We are very optimistic that these recommendations will produce results that will strengthen the agriculture sector and eventually lead to increased opportunities for Iraqi farmers.”
In his remarks, Mr. Staal emphasized U.S. government support to Iraqi agriculture, saying, “We are happy to see that our partnership with Iraq’s agriculture sector, which began in 2003, is continuing through HSAD. The recommended technologies and reforms, if implemented, will open up the market for increased investment which in turn will help a broad cross section of Iraqi farmers.”
The HSAD project will help the Ministry of Agriculture reform Iraqi laws, regulations, and institutions in the agricultural sector to encourage increased private sector investment. HSAD builds on USAID’s recently concluded 5.5-year, $179-million Inma agricultural project that helped expand the agribusiness private sector in Iraq and is another U.S. government program in support of Iraqi agriculture as outlined in the Strategic Framework Agreement.

[Ahmed-1]

cool tomatoes

[Ali - Iraq]

[Ali - Iraq]

Farmers collect the rice harvest in Najaf province, where two new agricultural villages are being constructed. [Qassem Zein/AFP]

New villages seek to improve agriculture sector in Iraq
ECONOMY | 2013-02-04
The Iraqi Ministry of Agriculture recently announced it started construction on two modern agricultural villages in the desert area of Najaf province, as part of a strategic ministerial plan adopted in 2008, officials said.

Under a contract signed with the Ministry of Industry and Minerals, the ministry has started work on the two-year, 58 billion dinar ($49.8 million) project, which will accommodate agricultural engineers and veterinary doctors, ministry undersecretary Ghazi al-Abboudi told Mawtani.

Two 5,000 dunam plots of land in the al-Ruhaimiya and al-Rahba districts in the Najaf desert have been designated for the villages, and the Ministry of Agriculture has obtained rights to the land, said Najaf Agriculture department director Majeed Jayyad.

The two sites have been deemed suitable for agricultural reclamation and for the construction of cattle farms, and have access to electricity services and paved roads, Jayyad told Mawtani.

The two ministries have formed a joint committee with the Najaf Agriculture department to follow up on the project, and the resident engineers have been named, he said.

In addition to their role in reviving and supporting agricultural production, the villages will play an important role in reducing unemployment, Jayyad said.

The villages will provide employment opportunities for graduates of agriculture and veterinary colleges, enabling them to participate in building up and serving the country, he said.

Model housing units are being built to high-level technical specifications, and the project will include a health unit, an elementary and a middle school, a police station, a gas station, a nursery and a recreational club among its amenities, al-Abboudi said.

"The objective behind this project is to grow agricultural production, both in terms of cattle and crops, by reclaiming the land surrounding the two villages," al-Abboudi said.

Recent graduates of agriculture and veterinary colleges will be invited to apply for the programme, he said, adding that selection criteria will include the graduation year, the applicant's academic average and whether they are a member of a martyr family.

Each beneficiary will be given 40 dunams to start an agricultural project, he said.

"Also, we will grant the beneficiaries interest-free, easy-term loans to finance their own private projects in addition to meeting their needs for machinery, technologies, agricultural vehicles, fertilisers and vaccines," he said.

The strategic plan aims to improve the agricultural sector through the gradual construction of modern agricultural villages throughout Iraq, al-Abboudi said.

Two villages will eventually be constructed in each province, except in the Kurdistan Region, at a total cost of more than 600 billion dinars ($515 million), he said.

Adel al-Mukhtar, an advisor to the parliamentary committee on agriculture and water, welcomed the construction of the two villages in Najaf.

Specialised agricultural projects such as this are "among the successful projects worldwide", he said. "They have proven to be effective in the agricultural development process."

"These projects have a great impact on increasing the planted areas and raising the productivity of the dunam, as well as achieving high-yield animal production and pushing the country towards self-sufficiency and food security," he said.

"These projects are also very important in directing and guiding farmers in rural communities to adopt modern agricultural methods, in addition to their role in helping to fight desertification, improving the environment and addressing unemployment among those working in the agricultural sector," al-Mukhtar said.

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[SumerianKing]

Has anyone thought of investing in this sector in the future?
Especially in planting many fruit trees where currently some fruits are 100% imported? Is there even much profit in doing so?

[Ali - Iraq]

Originally Posted by SumerianKing

Has anyone thought of investing in this sector in the future?
Especially in planting many fruit trees where currently some fruits are 100% imported? Is there even much profit in doing so?

Heavy rainfall encourages Iraq's agriculture and cattle industries
ECONOMY | 2013-02-06
Iraqi farmers, investors and agriculture officials are welcoming the heavy rains that have drenched parts of the country in the past few weeks, saying these will provide a needed boost for the agriculture and cattle industries.

Ali Abdul Hassan, an agricultural engineer at the Babil Agricultural Directorate, told Mawtani this kind of rainfall improves the agricultural output of palm trees, fruit plants and citrus trees by cleansing them and removing many pests.

It also creates huge reservoirs of underground water, he said, adding that many farms and orchards use sprinklers fed by these reservoirs to irrigate acreages planted with wheat and barley.

INFLUX OF INVESTORS
Businessmen and investors in Iraq's agricultural sector also welcomed the rain that swept the country.

"Increased rain leads to an influx of investors into this sector," Naseer Hadi, one such investor, told Mawtani.

"As businessmen with capital, we turned towards investing in greenhouses because they are more suitable and require less water, unlike the traditional method of agriculture," he said.

"But, greenhouses alone will not meet local market needs, for we need to plant grains and other crops whose planting requires large areas and abundant water," he said.

Heavy rainfall, according to Hadi, "boosts investment in agriculture, because now we have a huge surplus of water that encourages us, as investors, to plant the largest areas possible, which can then meet the market's need for local agricultural products."

BOOM YEAR FOR CROPS AND CATTLE
Cattle ranchers and farmers from various Iraqi provinces told Mawtani they feel their businesses will flourish this year due to the abundant water supply.

Jabbar al-Ameri, who owns a citrus farm that depends on irrigation from the Tigris River, said many citrus and palm tree farms suffered "serious drops in their output due to the fall of the river's water levels in past years, which negatively affected thousands of dunams of orchards".

"The rise in the river's level will help me water an entire citrus orchard, in contrast to previous years when I was not able to provide enough water for the trees," he said.

Cattle rancher Fadhel Mahbash told Mawtani he and his fellow ranchers have suffered from a lack of rainfall in previous years, as the huge areas their cattle grazed on turned into arid land.

"We have artesian wells, which are used to water the areas set aside for grazing, and many of them dried up because of the lack of rain," he said. "But the current rainy season will replenish them, and consequently grazing areas will grow, giving us the chance to increase and improve the cattle population."

Dhahi al-Sultani, an investor in the cattle industry, told Mawtani he believes the coming years will witness a huge increase in the number of cattle.

"There are vast areas of desert in which grass and shrubs will [now] grow and provide thousands of kilometres of suitable pasture areas," he said.

Cattle must feed on natural grass if the consumer wants high-quality meat, al-Sultani said.

When a lack of rain leads to the desertification of many pasture areas, cattle ranchers often resort to special fodder to feed their cattle, which may lead to an increase in costs, he added.

"But, if precipitation continues to be heavy in the coming seasons, we shall see robust investment in the cattle industry because the process would solely rely on natural grass, thus producing high-quality meat," he said.

[Ishtarporten]

Wheat Harvest Exceeds 3m Tons
Posted on 18 February 2013

By John Lee.
Azzaman reports that wheat production in 2012 rose to 3.26 million tons, despite a lack of rain.The harvest had fallen to an average 1.5 million tons in the years follow the US-led invasion in 2003, with the country becoming a net importer of wheat and other cereals.
Deputy Agriculture Minister Mahdi al-Qaisi said increasing cereal production was a top priority, adding that policies to revamp the country’s farming sector were paying off.
He said the ministry’s gift to Iraqi farmers in return for the hike in wheat production was a discount of 50% on all irrigation-related equipment.
Iraq’s wheat consumption is currently estimated at 5 million tons a year.

[alshawi1234]

Don't know if this is he right thread but I will post it anyway. Work continues in Karbalas green belt.

27km long 100 meters wide. About 120,000 trees of different kinds. Many palm trees, olive trees and other types.

[SumerianKing]

I hope they are smart and actually plant trees that will benefit the agriculture industry. And not just any random type of non fruit bearing trees.

[AssyrianBeauty]

I hope they cover all deserted land in iraq in palm trees... would be fun to witness.