QALA-I-NAW (Pajhwok): A number of pistachio traders in western Badghis complain about the lack of cold storage facilities, fearing the fruit could go rotten amid declining sales.
Burhanuddin, a pistachio trader in Badghis, told Pajhwok Afghan News the nuts had not been sold for a long time due to lack of foreign market and cold storage facilities.
If the government did not find a suitable market for pistachios, he feared, all their produce would decay and they would suffer huge losses.
The pistachio business had severely been affected by Covid-19, change in the political situation and the current economic crisis in the country, he noted.
These factors also affected pistachio sales, Burhanuddin said, adding the dried fruit would be lost if the situation was allowed to persist.
Abdul Majid, another businessman, says the price of pistachios has decreased this year and the lack of market has hindered sales.
In previous years, traders used to sell one kilogram of pistachio for 1,800 afghanis, but the price has now fallen to 1,200 afghanis.
According to Abdul Majid, the dried fruit does not find its way to foreign markets. “We, the pistachio traders, ask the government to find us a market, otherwise the fruit would rot.”
Agricultural experts in Badghis believe traditional processing and storage methods increased the vulnerability of pistachios decaying.
Agriculturist Shams-ul-Haq Shams pointed out that crushing pistachios and storing it in the traditional way caused a large number of kernels to be lost.
He suggested that the government should prepare air corridors for pistachios and create standard cold storage facilities for pistachios.
However, Mohsen Ehsan, acting director of agriculture, said he was aware of the problems and shared them with the Ministry of Agriculture.
hz/sa/mud
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