Herat farmers for ban on potato imports during harvest season

HERAT CITY (Pajhwok): Potato growers in western Herat province are concerned about the increasing import of potatoes from Iran and Pakistan during the harvest season.

They are calling for a halt to the import of similar agricultural products into the country.

These farmers say that every year, simultaneously with the start of the potato harvest season and other domestic agricultural products, the import of similar foreign products also increases, leading to a sharp drop in the prices of their locally produced goods.

Sayed Naeem, a farmer in Herat who has been cultivating potatoes and vegetables for over twenty years, says that the unchecked import of potatoes, tomatoes, and onions from neighboring countries, especially Pakistan, has made it impossible for them to even cover the basic costs of farming.

He explains that during the potato harvest season in Herat, potatoes are imported from Iran and Pakistan, and as a result, farmers fail to break even.

He emphasized that the Afghan government collects usher and zakat (Islamic agricultural taxes) from farmers, and therefore, it should support them by increasing customs tariffs on similar imported agricultural products.

Abdul Rauf, another farmer, said: “If the government stops the import of Pakistani and Iranian potatoes, the market for domestic products will be significantly better.”

In addition to the issue of imports, he identified the lack of proper cold storage facilities, insufficient resources, the unavailability and high cost of quality fertilizers and improved seeds as reasons for the poor market conditions for their agricultural products.

He said that this year he planted potatoes on two jeribs (approximately 0.4 hectares) of land and hopes to earn about 100,000 afghanis from the harvest, which, according to him, will begin in about ten days.

According to Abdul Rauf, he spent 50,000 afghanis to cultivate potatoes on two jeribs of land and expects to harvest between 10 to 20 tons of potatoes per jerib.

Abdul Aziz, another farmer, also stressed the need to stop the import of agricultural products and called for the creation of better market opportunities for their produce.

He said that if government officials support farmers, they can achieve productive and profitable harvests.

Meanwhile, Mahmood, a landowner from the Guzara district, also believes that timely support for farmers can play a vital and valuable role in the growth of agriculture and in recognizing the hard work of the farmers.

He said that in addition to preventing the import of similar products as soon as possible, the government must also adopt supportive measures for farmers.

At the same time, officials from Herat’s Directorate of Agriculture, Irrigation, and Livestock confirmed the concerns about increased imports and stated that they are trying to support farmers.

Bashir Ahmad Ahmadi, head of agricultural extension at the directorate, without referring to any specific policy regarding halting imports of similar products or raising customs tariffs, said that this year the cultivation of potatoes has increased compared to previous years, and the department is working to support farmers by distributing chemical fertilizers and improved quality seeds.

He said that this year, over 1,300 hectares of agricultural land in the districts of Injil, Guzara, and other areas have been planted with potatoes.

Ahmadi estimates that potato production in the province may reach more than 23,000 tons this year.

This comes as farmers, in addition to dealing with water shortages and consecutive droughts, also face major challenges such as limited access to fertilizers, improved seeds, and a lack of markets to sell their agricultural products.

sa/ma