The Ministry of Agriculture in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq has announced its decision to stop importing tomatoes in order to protect the local production, following the strong concerns raised by local producers in this regard.

According to the statement released, the decision to stop imports has taken effect on August 27 and will remain in force until further notice.

The statement emphasized that the decision was taken "to protect local products from competition with imported tomatoes."

Recently, local producers in the Sulaymaniyah Governorate decided to throw their tomatoes away on the streets in protest against the low prices.

In the past few years, growers have repeatedly called on the Kurdistan Regional Government to prevent the flow of foreign products that are also locally produced, emphasizing their ability to meet the local demand.

The Kurdistan government, headed by Masrour Barzani, stressed the need to support the agricultural sector, diversify the economy and not rely solely on the oil and gas sectors.

Source: sotaliraq.com