Editing Economy of Iran (section)

=== Agriculture and foodstuffs ===
{{Main|Agriculture in Iran}}
{{See also|Geography of Iran|Environmental issues in Iran}}
[[File:Iran land.jpg|thumb|right|Wheat, the most important crop, is grown mainly in the west and northwest whilst rice is the major crop in the Caspian region.]]

Agriculture contributes 9.5% to the [[gross domestic product]] and employs 17% of the labor force.<ref name="Nordea-2020"/> About 9% of Iran's land is arable,<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://data.worldbank.org/indicator/AG.LND.ARBL.ZS|title=Arable land (% of land area) {{!}} Data|website=data.worldbank.org|language=en-us|access-date=May 10, 2018}}</ref> with the main food-producing areas located in the [[Caspian Sea|Caspian]] region and in northwestern valleys. Some northern and western areas support rain-fed agriculture, while others require [[Irrigation in Iran|irrigation]].<ref name="LOC7">{{Cite book |last1 = Curtis |first1 = Glenn |url = https://archive.org/details/irancountrystudy00curt_2/page/354 |last2 = Hooglund |first2 = Eric |title = Iran, a country study |place = Washington, D.C., USA |publisher = [[Library of Congress]] |date = April 2008 |page = [https://archive.org/details/irancountrystudy00curt_2/page/354 354] |isbn = 978-0-8444-1187-3 }}</ref>
Primitive farming methods, overworked and under-fertilized soil, poor seed and water scarcity are the principal obstacles to increased production. About one third of total cultivated land is irrigated. Construction of multipurpose [[List of reservoirs and dams in Iran|dams and reservoirs]] along rivers in the [[Zagros]] and [[Alborz]] mountains have increased the amount of water available for irrigation. Agricultural production is increasing as a result of modernization, mechanization, improvements to crops and livestock as well as land redistribution programs.<ref name="www-wds.worldbank.org">{{Cite web |title=Islamic Republic of Iran{{Snd}} Services for Agriculture and Rural Development |website=[[World Bank]] |date=June 1994 |url=http://www-wds.worldbank.org/external/default/WDSContentServer/WDSP/IB/1994/06/20/000009265_3961004234937/Rendered/PDF/multi_page.pdf |access-date=March 28, 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080723090455/http://www.austrade.gov.au/Agribusiness-to-Iran/default.aspx |archive-date=July 23, 2008 }}</ref>

Wheat, the most important crop, is grown mainly in the west and northwest. Rice is the major crop in the Caspian region. Other crops include barley, corn, cotton, sugar beets, tea, hemp, tobacco, fruits, potatoes, legumes (beans and lentils), vegetables, fodder plants (alfalfa and clover), almonds, walnuts and spices including [[cumin]] and [[sumac]]. Iran is the world's largest producer of [[saffron]], [[pistachios]], honey, [[berberis vulgaris|berberis]] and [[berries]] and the second largest date producer.<ref name="FAO1">[http://faostat.fao.org/site/339/default.aspx Commodities by country – Iran] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110713020710/http://faostat.fao.org/site/339/default.aspx |date=July 13, 2011 }}. FAO Statistics (2010). Retrieved January 30, 2010.</ref> Meat and dairy products include lamb, goat meat, beef, poultry, milk, eggs, butter, and cheese.

Non-food products include wool, leather, and silk. Forestry products from the northern slopes of the [[Alborz Mountains]] are economically important. Tree-cutting is strictly controlled by the government, which also runs a [[reforestation]] program. Rivers drain into the Caspian Sea and are fished for salmon, carp, trout, pike, and sturgeon that produce [[caviar]], of which Iran is the largest producer.<ref name="www-wds.worldbank.org" /><ref>[http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/business/1394717.stm Business | Crunch time for Caspian caviar]. BBC News, June 19, 2001. Retrieved January 30, 2010.</ref>

Since the 1979 revolution, commercial farming has replaced subsistence farming as the dominant mode of agricultural production. By 1997, the gross value reached $25 billion.<ref name="Ministry of Commerce" /> Iran is 90% self-sufficient in essential agricultural products, although limited rice production leads to substantial imports. In 2007 Iran reached self-sufficiency in wheat production and for the first time became a net wheat exporter.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://iran-daily.com/1386/3029/html/economy.htm |title=Trade With PGCC To Improve |access-date=December 3, 2008 |url-status=bot: unknown |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080307100713/http://iran-daily.com/1386/3029/html/economy.htm |archive-date=March 7, 2008 }}. ''Iran Daily'', December 31, 2007.</ref> By 2003, a quarter of Iran's non-oil exports were of agricultural products,<ref>[http://info.worldbank.org/etools/docs/library/55547/geoindications/geoindications/pdf/casIRANillustrated.pdf The Case Study of The Islamic Republic of Iran]. World Bank, June 10, 2004. Retrieved April 7, 2008.</ref> including fresh and dried fruits, nuts, animal hides, processed foods, and spices.<ref name="Ministry of Commerce" /> Iran exported $736 million worth of [[foodstuff]]s in 2007 and $1 billion (~600,000&nbsp;tonnes) in 2010.<ref name=export>{{cite news |url = http://tehrantimes.com/Index_view.asp?code=214856 |title = Iran's foodstuff exports near $1b |newspaper = Tehran Times |date = February 24, 2010 |access-date = January 21, 2012 }}</ref> A total of 12,198 entities are engaged in the [[Agriculture in Iran#Foodstuff|Iranian food industry]], or 12% of all entities in the [[Industry of Iran|industry sector]]. The sector also employs approximately 328,000 people or 16.1% of the
entire industry sector's workforce.<ref name=BYI5>{{Cite book |last1 = Ayse |first1 = Valentine |url = http://www.investiniran.ir/en/filepool/26?redirectpage=%2fen%2febook |last2 = Nash |first2 = Jason John |last3 = Leland |first3 = Rice |title = The Business Year 2013: Iran |place = London, U.K. |publisher = The Business Year |date = January 2013 |page = 82 |isbn = 978-1-908180-11-7 |access-date = March 14, 2014 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20161227193349/http://www.investiniran.ir/en/filepool/26?redirectpage=%2Fen%2Febook |archive-date = December 27, 2016 }}</ref>