3.4 million MT wheat produced nationwide this year: Ministry

KABUL (Pajhwok): Afghanistan produced 3.4 million Metric Tonnes (MT) of wheat this solar year showing 13 percent surge in the wheat yield production comparing to the last year, according to a statement on Sunday.

On its Twitter handle, the Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock, wrote there was 13 percent increase in the wheat yield this year comparing to the last year.

It added this year 35.4 million MT of wheat were produced nationwide in which 3.8 million MT were irrigated wheat yield and 548,000 MT were rain-fed.

The ministry said: “This year wheat were cultivated on over 2 million hectares land out of which 34.1 million hectares was irrigated and 680,000 hectares was rain-fed.”

Kandahar, Herat, Helmand and Kunduz were the leading provinces in wheat cultivation. This comes that Afghanistan’s annual wheat demand stands at 6.6 million MT.

Helmand, Kunduz are the provinces that cultivated the most irrigated wheat while Panjshir, Samangan and Nuristan cultivated the less irrigated wheat.

The ministry said Faryab and Takhar are the provinces which has the leading rain fed wheat cultivation while Nangarhar and Bamyan provinces had the least wheat cultivation.

According to the report this year there was 4.4 percent expansion in the irrigated lands and 15 percent expansion in the rain-fed lands.

The Ministry of Agriculture said the prevention of poppy cultivation, increase of agricultural areas, timely distribution of wheat refined seeds and chemical fertilizers, assistance to farmers through the distribution of agricultural tools and machines, and encouragement of farmers are the reasons behind surge in the wheat cultivation and yield.