AMMAN: The government floated a tender this week to purchase 100,000 tonnes of wheat to boost its strategic reserves amid rising consumption caused by the influx of Syrian refugees, a government official told The Jordan Times Tuesday.
Industry, Trade and Supply Ministry Spokesperson Yanal Barmawi said the ministry floated five tenders in the first half of this year, importing around 450,000 tonnes of wheat valued at more than $105 million. Wheat reserves currently stand at 778,000 tonnes, which cover over nine months, he said.
Between January and June, the ministry floated three tenders to import 300,000 tonnes of barley valued at around $65 million, Barmawi added, indicating that reserves of the grain are around 525,000 tonnes, covering over seven months.
“We have a programmed plan for grain purchases to keep strategic reserves at secure and comfortable levels,” the official said. Barmawi noted that the annual consumption of wheat went up from 750,000 tonnes prior to the Syrian crisis, which erupted in 2011, to over one million tonnes over the past four years.
