ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - The majority of the red meat consumed in Duhok is imported as local farmers are unable to meet domestic demand, a provincial official told Rudaw on Thursday.
“[We] still have not reached the level of self-sufficiency… because we have the capability of meeting 40 percent of domestic demand,” said Redeer Sedqi, manager of Duhok’s Livestock Resources.
According to Sedqi, the province consumes 22,000 tons of red meat annually.
Duhok currently has 28 cattle farming projects that receive limited government support and about another 1,000 cattle are being bred outside of these projects by small-scale farmers.
There are also 48 projects for animal husbandry or sheep and goat farming, but the majority of the livestock exists outside of these.
The province is closer to self-sufficiency in terms of dairy products.
“One hundred and twenty tons of dairy products are produced daily which covers about 70% of the domestic demand and the rest is imported from abroad,” said Sedqi.
This year’s drought in the Kurdistan Region and the resultant scarcity of grazing grounds has made it difficult for farmers, including those raising fish.
In a good year, Duhok produces about 90% of the domestic demand for fish from 51 projects that produce 44,200 tons annually, but this number goes down to about 80% of the domestic need in drought conditions and the rest is imported, according to Sedqi.
The Kurdistan Region produces 285,000 tons of poultry products annually and Duhok exports about 70 percent of its product as it exceeds domestic needs. The province consumes about 35,000 to 37,000 tons of poultry annually.
According to a report by Kurdistan Region’s Ministry of Agriculture and Water Resources, there are five million goats and sheep, as well as 250,000 cattle in the Kurdistan Region.
