Farah Watermelon Yields Increase by 17 Percent

Jawza 19: June 9, 2019

Farah Agriculture, Irrigation, and Livestock Directorate said that watermelon yields have increased by 17 percent in the province compared to last year.

Abdul Manan Matin, provincial agriculture director, said, “The data collected by the provincial agriculture staff shows 17 percent increase in watermelon yields in 2019. Last year 18,220 hectares of land was under watermelon cultivation, producing 674,140 tons of watermelon. This year some 19,788 hectares of land was under watermelon cultivation, producing 791,520 tons of watermelon.

Matin added that Farah watermelon is being exported to 14 provinces which include Herat, Nimruz, Kandahar, Helmand, Zabul, Ghazni, Kabul, Logar and some other provinces.

It is important to note that Eid al-Fitr holidays coupled with closures of some routes caused watermelon price to fall in the province but the Ministry of Agriculture took action in order to open routes for the export of watermelon; now the product is being exported to various provinces.