Reuters
Syrian Minister of Agriculture Hassan Qatana said that Syria lost 50 percent of its livestock due to terrorism.
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“We currently have 40 percent of agricultural facilities in the poultry sector, of which we have an investor, and we lost 50 percent of the livestock, including sheep and cows, through smuggling and dying because of terrorism, either by killing or slaughtering because of hunger,” Qatana added in statements to “Sputnik”.
He explained, “There are indications that we have lost between 40 to 50 percent of the poultry, which are related to the investment ratios of the establishments.”
“The Syrian government has taken measures to support the animal sector, as the support helps breeders to preserve their herd,” he stressed.
He pointed out that “the prices of meat are high because the breeder only sells as needed, pointing out that the prices also rise due to the low supply.”
He stated that “Syria used to import calves to support the market with meat, but international prices rose due to the currency difference and the rise in the price gap. Prices for imported meat became very high.”
He stated that the Syrian government had allowed the import of meat and live flocks, “and we resorted to increasing poultry production, but it also collided with the high price of fodder.”
Regarding the reality of agricultural industries today, after 10 years of war and siege on Syria, he replied that “the food industries have been affected by both public and private parts, as terrorism includes everything.”
“Syria is an agricultural country that depends on agriculture. When the land is not invested for years, its loss is priceless,” he added.
In response to a question “about the occupied agricultural areas of the Syrian lands,” he said, “His country does not recognize the occupation and that this is a temporary period and the Syrian army will inevitably return these areas.”
“The existence of the so-called” Qasd “has destroyed more than 50 percent of the agricultural areas that are planted with important crops.
Source: Sputnik
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