Syria exports 1,000 tons of pomegranate daily

Pomegranates are at the forefront of the agricultural products that Syria is famous for.  Their harvest comes at the end of the agricultural seasons, before the state of stagnancy that occurs in the winter period.

Member of the Vegetables and Fruits Traders and Exporters Committee in Damascus, Muhammad al-Akkad, confirms that the focus this year is on exporting to Iraq, Lebanon, the Gulf and Russia. He said in a statement to “Tishreen” daily  that more than 15 refrigerators carrying about 400 tons are exported daily to Iraq and 10 refrigerators carrying  200 tons per day to Lebanon. As for Russia, about 700 containers carrying  between 200-500 tons per day are exported to it through the port of Tartus in addition to 25 refrigerators loaded with various vegetables and fruits that go daily to the Gulf countries.

Al-Akkad clarified the decrease in exports compared to the previous years as a result of the overall costs of transportation fees and transfer cost from one refrigerator to another at the border. He expressed hope that  exports to Iraq will improve and all obstacles for export will be eliminated.

Regarding the impact of exports on local markets, Al-Akkad ruled out the increase in vegetable prices, pointing out that it is possible for the prices of fruits to rise, but by a small percentage that does not exceed 10 percent, given that the demand for them has increased.

The Ministry of Agriculture estimated the production of pomegranate for this season at about 87,737 tons, of which 49,374 tons are irrigated and 9363 tons are rainfed.

Pomegranate cultivation spreads in many countries of the Mediterranean basin, and is also cultivated on a commercial scale in the Arab countries. It is considered one of the important fruit trees in Syria due to its high medicinal value.

Inas Abdulkareem