.jpeg&w=3840&q=75)
ERBIL, Kurdistan Region – In less than two decades, the Kurdistan Region has transformed itself from a net importer of potatoes into a major agricultural powerhouse, now producing one million tons annually and exporting its harvest across the Middle East and beyond.
"In 2019, at the beginning of this [government] cabinet, we had 119,000 tons of potato production," Begard Talabani, the Region’s agriculture minister, told Rudaw’s Bakhtyar Qadir on Wednesday.
"Today, as I speak to you, we have one million tons of potato production in the Kurdistan Region,” she added.
This boom has been driven by a combination of fertile land, modern technology, and strategic investment. This year, approximately 40,000 dunams are dedicated to potato cultivation, with the Nawkur plain in the Bardarash district west of Erbil accounting for 70 percent of the total yield. The expansion has spurred the establishment of 11 large-scale processing plants.
Abdulqadir Anwar, a farmer in the plain, described the potatoes he cultivates as having “excellent quality.”
“We have fertile land and abundant water. There is high demand for our potatoes in the market. We planted six to seven different varieties this year,” he added.
The Kurdistan Region now grows 39 different varieties, catering to diverse market needs, from table potatoes to those specifically cultivated for potato chips and French fries. The quality of the produce has captured the attention of international markets. In addition to supplying central and southern Iraq, Kurdish potatoes are now exported to the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Russia, and Libya.
In 2023, the Kurdistan Region officially began exporting locally grown potatoes to global fast-food chains in the Middle East, including KFC and McDonalds.
