Baghdad clears Kirkuk fish sales after five-month ban

Shafaq News- Kirkuk

Iraq’s Agriculture Ministry approved the sale of Kirkuk-produced fish in Baghdad and other provinces after nearly five months of transport restrictions, MP Mohammed Ali Al-Naimi told Shafaq News on Thursday.

Al-Naimi stated that the decision followed repeated appeals from producers seeking access to markets outside Kirkuk. Farmers had been limited to local demand of about 300 kilograms a day, leaving fish in ponds longer and raising feed and maintenance costs.

Mansour Ahmed Al-Bayati, director of Kirkuk’s Veterinary Teaching Hospital, previously put the province’s fish farms at about 800, concentrated in Daquq, Lailan, Altun Kupri, and Al-Dibis.