A farmer harvests cucumbers inside a plastic greenhouse in the village of Haitan, west of Anbar. Each unit can yield up to 300 kilograms per season. Photo by 964media.
Hit
Iraqi farmers face rising costs as greenhouse cultivation expands
HIT – In the village of Haitan, west of Anbar governorate, rows of plastic greenhouses now stretch across farmland once left idle by conflict. Local farmers, led by members of the Khalifa family from the Zubaid tribe, have expanded greenhouse cultivation from just 15 structures before 2017 to more than 100 today, with cucumbers emerging as the crop of choice.
“Before the liberation from ISIS [in 2017], there were only 15 to 20 greenhouses in the area,” said Burhan Thaer, a farmer from Haitan. “After the liberation, we—the Khalifa family from the Zubaid tribe—worked together to revive our village, and now the number exceeds 100.”
Cucumbers are planted twice a year, first in February and again in May or June. “The winter season is short, but cucumber is the best crop for greenhouses. It’s profitable and handles fluctuating weather better than eggplant, peppers, or tomatoes,” Thaer told 964media.
Yields can reach up to 300 kilograms per greenhouse. But despite their productivity, local farmers are struggling with steep costs and crop vulnerability.
“Fertilizer and seed costs are high,” Thaer said. “A single bag of fertilizer costs around 120,000 dinars (about $83) and can go up to 180,000 dinars (about $125). Seed prices are also expensive.”
Crop disease is another challenge. “Sometimes greenhouses are hit with devastating diseases like downy mildew,” he said. “It’s hard to treat and can destroy the entire crop if there’s moisture.”
Cucumbers grown in Haitan supply markets across Anbar, including Hit, Ramadi and Kubaisa, with occasional surplus shipments reaching Mosul. But competition from cheaper imported cucumbers is cutting into profits.
“We sell local cucumbers at 300 to 350 dinars [about $0.21 to $0.24] per kilogram,” Thaer said. “Meanwhile, imported cucumbers from Baghdad are sold at 150 to 200 dinars [about $0.10 to $0.14] in Hit. We can’t match that price because of high input costs and the labor involved.”
Still, farmers remain committed. “If we had some form of government support, things would be much better,” Thaer said. “We chose greenhouse farming because it delivers high yields and protects the crops from sun exposure.”
