Date production in Karbala Province has recorded a notable increase this year, surpassing 220,000 tons and rising by nearly 40,000 tons compared with the previous season, amid local efforts to support agricultural activity and expand palm cultivation.
Karbala Agriculture Director Hashem Al-Zuhairi said the increase followed the implementation of an agricultural strategy focused on developing investment in crop and livestock production, while giving particular attention to the palm sector. The province has more than three million palm trees.
He said improved output was supported by a decline in agricultural pest outbreaks, particularly the dubas bug, as well as intensified preventive and pest-control campaigns. The expansion of palm-growing areas through new agricultural projects also contributed to the higher production.
Nizar Abdul Ridha, head of the Planning and Follow-up Department, said Karbala’s dates have distinctive qualities due to the fertility of its agricultural land and the availability of water resources, giving the province an important position in Iraq’s date industry.
He noted that further increases in production remain possible, particularly with the Agriculture Ministry continuing its policies of supporting local products, reducing imports, encouraging agricultural investment and expanding the cultivation of economically important palm varieties.
