The food industry is the biggest non-oil industry in Iran, with an annual turnover of around 100 billion dollars. It is also the biggest job provider among the industries, accounting for 16.8% of the total industrial jobs.

According to The Iran Project, there exist 15,000 active production units in the food and processing industry in Iran, which makes it the third largest industry after oil and petrochemicals with a potential to supply an assortment of products to the domestic and export markets.

The food industry is the most important economic sector managed by the private sector where more than 80% of the country’s economy is in the hands of the government.

The history of Iran's food exports goes back to 3,000 years ago. The sector is developed and advanced, where Iran’s 2025 Vision has set a production capacity target of more than 300 million tonnes.

Iran produces about 83% of its annual food needs domestically. While the country has been going through one of the fastest-growing urbanization processes in the world, the agricultural sector, accounting for 12.2% of the gross domestic product, is still playing an important role in the economy of the country.

The export of food industry products is one of the pillars of non-oil exports due to the existing potentials in the country and certain advantages such as higher added value and job creation. 

Over the past decade, Iran’s food exports have increased more than 10-fold to over $10 billion, constituting 11% of the overall added value in the country's industry.

Wheat and rice are two of the most important nutrition items in Iran’s food basket and the country produces a significant portion of the two staples.