Shafaq News– Baghdad

Iraq’s move to close traditional fish farms to conserve water risks disrupting supply and pushing prices higher in the months ahead, an industry official warned on Wednesday.

Iyad Al-Talibi, head of the Iraqi Fish Producers Association, told Shafaq News that the Ministry of Water Resources ordered the shutdown of all licensed earthen fish farms from November 2025, citing severe water shortages. The measure was later postponed allowing producers to sell existing stock.

The decision has already distorted the market, Al-Talibi said, forcing farmers to rush sales to limit losses, flooding supply and driving prices below production costs. “These quantities can’t be sold in days or weeks. They need around 10 months,” he explained, warning that enforcement would eventually trigger shortages and sharp price rises.

Fish prices have dropped to about 4,500 Iraqi dinars ($3.10) per kilogram, below an estimated production cost of roughly 6,000 dinars, he added. Prices could climb to 10,000 dinars per kilogram if output contracts.

The ministry has defended the policy as part of a shift toward closed-system aquaculture, which uses less water. Ghazwan Al-Sahlani, deputy director general at the Public Authority for the Operation of Irrigation and Drainage Projects, said closed systems are more water-efficient and widely used in water-scarce countries, adding that the government is studying gradual conversion and support measures.

Read more: Iraq’s water crisis deepens: Reserves collapse, mismanagement continues