Tunisia’s 2015 grain harvest seen falling 40 pct to 1.4 mln: ministry
Annual grain production has averaged 1.85 million tons in the last five years in the North African country
Tunisia’s grain harvest is expected to fall by 40 percent in 2015 to 1.4 million tons from 2.34 million in 2014, forcing it to import more to offset domestic output that has been hurt by a lack of rainfall, the government said on Monday.
Agriculture Minister Saad Seddik told reporters grain imports would rise to 2.3 million tons this season.
“Due to a lack of rainfall in April, we expect a sharp decline in the grain harvest in 2015 by 40 percent,” he said.
The chief of Tunisia’s grain board told Reuters that imports would include 1 million tons of durum wheat and 1.1 million tons of soft wheat.
Annual grain production has averaged 1.85 million tons in the last five years in the North African country.
Tunisia produces mostly durum wheat, which is used to produce pasta, on its fertile, irrigated farmland, and imports mostly soft wheat and barley.
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