Shafaq News – Duhok

The city of Amedi in Iraqi Kurdistan’s Duhok province launched its third annual Tahini and Local Production Festival on Thursday, drawing producers, farmers, and visitors to celebrate one of the district’s key food industries.

The event, now a fixture on the local calendar, promotes regional goods while spotlighting Amedi’s culinary and cultural identity. Demand for tahini—made from ground sesame seeds and locally known as Rashi—typically surges in winter due to its high caloric value, especially when paired with date molasses or honey.

Speaking to Shafaq News, Berman Amidi, a member of the organizing committee, said that 110 tents were set up to feature Amedi’s tahini varieties, autumn produce, traditional cuisine, and folkloric shows. “The festival supports direct sales and motivates youth to pursue ventures linked to tourism and rural development.”

Tahini producer Hussein Amidi told our agency that he participated to present this year’s output and sell directly to attendees, stressing that such events “bridge producers with consumers and showcase the strength of local goods.”

Farmer Jankir Hassan welcomed the initiative as a boost to agriculture but underscored ongoing obstacles in fruit marketing. He urged authorities to build food processing and packaging plants, particularly after recent security improvements tied to the ceasefire between the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) and the Turkish army.

Years of clashes between Turkish forces and PKK militants—whom Ankara labels a “terrorist” group—have damaged farmland, displaced dozens of villagers, and severely restricted agriculture in the mountainous terrain around Amedi.

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