HASAKAH, Syria (North Press) – Mer’i Ahmad, 49, a farmer from Shaddadi in the southern countryside of Hasakah, northeast Syria, is afraid of planting his rain-fed land with wheat this year after last season’s losses due to drought and scarcity of rain.
Last season, farmers of rain-fed lands in Hasakah countryside suffered heavy losses due to drought and scarcity of rain.
Last year, Ahmad bought some tons of wheat seed from the black market at 2.200 Syrian pounds (SYP) per kilogram to plant his 300-acre-land.
However, he suffered losses that he described as “substantial” due to the drought.
Ahmad told North Press, the losses amount prompted most farmers to refrain from planting rain-fed crops.
Hasakah and its countryside have been suffering from drought and scarcity of rain for three consecutive years which negatively affected the rain-fed winter season and damaged the irrigated season.
The 38-year-old, Sami al-Omar, a farmer from the countryside of Shaddadi, has a land with an estimated space of 200 acres.
Last year, al-Omar cultivated his land with barley but due to the scarcity of rain, his land appeared almost semi-arid.
Al-Omar bought barley seeds from the black market at 1.600 SYP per kilogram, hopping to make up for the loss.
In addition, he paid for tillage and fertilizer but the drought affected the production.
Al-Omar told North Press that during the past season, no barley was grown due to drought and scarcity, causing fear of new losses this year.
In 2021, farmers of the rain-fed lands in southern areas of Hasakah were forced to buy agricultural supplies from the black market because Agriculture Committees, affiliated with the Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria (AANES), could not provide the necessary support.
One kilogram of wheat seeds in the black market costs from 1.700 to 2.200 SYP depending on cleanliness and quality, and one kilogram of barley costs from 2.000 to 2.600 SYP.
The reason of high price of barley is due to severe shortage of barley where it used as fodder for sheep.
The AANES had set the price of wheat seed at 2.300 SYP in 2022.