Dates are fruitful and beneficial product bearing many kind of minerals, vitamins and phytonutrients. Having dark layers (especially Mazafati dates), sweet taste, enriched syrup, set dates apart from other fruits and nuts.
In recent years Iran has been a leading producer of dates in the world with an annual production of 900,000 metric tons from 218,000 ha of cultivated land.
Date palms grow mainly in south, south east and south west of the country.
There are about 400 varieties known in Iran, but only a few of them are commercially important and used for exporting purpose as below:
