Thanks to the introduction of scientific achievements and advanced agro-technology in cotton growing, and the cultivation of high-yielding foreign varieties, our hardworking farmers and dehkans created a harvest of nearly 4 million tons on 875 thousand hectares of land. For the first time, the average cotton yield reached 46 centners.
This year, more than 3,000 farmers achieved an average of 50-60 centners per hectare, and 1,500 surpassed the 70-centner mark, creating their own school of experience in cotton growing.
Our grain farmers also created a harvest of 8 million 400 thousand tons this year through new local varieties and biotechnology, with an average yield reaching 85 centners. In this, more than 3,500 of our farmers who obtained a yield of over 100 centners per hectare have a worthy share.
The labor of our rice growers was also specially recognized. This year, they cultivated rice on 268 thousand hectares, obtaining a harvest of 1 million 340 thousand tons, with an average yield of 50 centners.
In the current period when water issues are acute, our farmers saved 350 million cubic meters of water by applying water-saving technology on 35 thousand hectares of rice fields and cultivating rice using the seedling method on 45 thousand hectares.
The vigorous efforts in recent years to renew orchards and vineyards and the development of intensive vegetable growing are also yielding results.
In three years, 155 thousand hectares of orchards and vineyards were established, and intensive orchards were expanded to 150 thousand hectares.
This year's production of 3.4 million tons of fruit, 2 million tons of grapes, 19.5 million tons of vegetables, melons, and potatoes, and 1 million tons of cereals and oilseeds confirms these ideas.
Most importantly, based on this, while maintaining stable prices in the domestic market, agriculture has become the sector bringing in the most foreign currency after textiles.
Since the beginning of the year, food exports have increased by 37 percent, reaching 3 billion dollars, and by the end of the year, this indicator will exceed 3.2 billion dollars for the first time.
The number of countries importing our fruits and vegetables has increased by 18, reaching 83. We have risen to 3rd place in the world for exports of dried plums and apricots, 7th for peaches and figs, 8th for cherries, and 13th for grapes.
