Iran Decline in Rice Production and Rising Prices in Iran…

By Hoshang Amiri.

The import of rice from March 21 to December 21, 2024, has decreased by approximately 20%, while the Ministry of Agriculture has claimed that with the production of 2.7 million tons of rice this year, the country’s need for imports has reduced.

According to the state-run Tasnim News Agency, Shayegan Adibi, introduced as an agricultural expert and the former “rice project manager” at the Ministry of Agriculture, stated that according to the latest official report by the ministry, the area under rice cultivation in 2023 was announced to be approximately 700,000 hectares. Including re-cultivation and ratoon harvests, this figure reached 790,000 hectares.

This agricultural expert, citing existing records, estimated the actual cultivated area to be around 600,000 hectares, with 67% of it located in the provinces of Gilan and Mazandaran.

Adibi also described the Ministry of Agriculture’s claim about aerial mapping as “lacking technical validity” and said, “Such a plan has not been implemented on a large scale.”

Adibi added that the area under rice cultivation in 2023 had not changed compared to the previous year.

He explained that, according to the official report of the Ministry of Agriculture, the paddy production this year, including the first cultivation, re-cultivation, and ratoon harvests, was estimated at about 3.485 million tons, equivalent to the production of 2 million tons of white rice.

The former “rice project manager” also added that due to issues in accessing agricultural inputs, a reduction in the distribution of high-quality seeds, and a lack of progress in cultivation methods, rice production has not increased this year.

Adibi emphasized: “The claim of producing 2.7 million tons of white rice in 2024, which implies a 35% increase in production compared to the previous year, does not align with the realities of production in 2024.”

This agricultural expert warned that unprofessional estimates, in addition to impacting the increase in rice prices in the market, will raise the production costs for the 2025 agricultural year, particularly the wages of farmers, further burdening both consumers and producers.

Previously, Majidreza Khaki, spokesperson for the Rice Importers Association, stated that the price of Iranian rice had increased by 30% in less than a month.

Reports citing official statistics also indicate that sugar increased by 66%, Iranian rice by 56%, and cooking oil by 40% in December compared to the same month last year.

The price increases come at a time when the Central Bank of the Islamic Republic of Iran recently claimed that the 12-month inflation rate reached 36% in December 2024, the lowest in the past 50 months.

The inflation in Iran is influenced by economic policies, the Iranian regime’s actions outside its borders, the ongoing devaluation of the rial, and the power and gas outages in industries. This situation has been reflected in the protests of retirees, workers, and other wage earners, who have voiced their objections to the Iranian government officials.

Published Date: January 27, 2025