ERBIL, Kurdistan Region -Traditionally baked at home, Kurdish tiri bread is now being made in factories across the region and has become a profitable business for many families.
Rabar Mahmood, 29, says lack of job opportunities drove him to establish a tiri bread factory where a number of women work for him in their little village of Boskin in Raniya, Sulaimani province.
Tiri bread is seen as healthier than other types of bread.
"Our factory's tiri bread is in high demand," Mahmood said. "Every day we send 2,500 pieces of tiri bread to Erbil markets."
He says he uses five to six tons of flour every month and sells a set of 50 breads for 11,000 dinars ($9.20).
While sales fluctuate seasonally, Mahmood says is business is doing good in Erbil and Sulaimani.
"In Spring, particularly when Newroz (New Year) arrives, we cannot fully keep up with demand, even if we work round the clock. However, our sales drop in the winter," he explained.
The shift in tiri baking from households to factories is particularly marked in Raparin, where public and private sector job opportunities are scarce.
According to data Rudaw has obtained from Ranya’s local authorities, nearly 100 tiri bread factories have opened in the area since 2014, when the Kurdistan Region began to experience crippling economic decline.
A KRG official says the idea of the establishment of Kurdish bread factories has helped the local population.
"The establishment of these factories created jobs for many unemployed women and that has really made us happy,"Rania mayor Hussein Ibrahim said.
To catch up with the market demand, some factories have started using advanced tools to make as much bread as they can in a day.
"To quicker respond to the market demand, we are producing more than 5,000 on a daily basis by using advanced tools," Faraidoon Othman, another Rania factory owner in Raniya said.
22 women work in Othman’s factory, 12 of whom are university graduates.
"Each worker in our factory is paid around 90 to 130,000 dinars ($75-$110)," he said. "Our factory has become a source of livelihood for 15 families."
He added in addition to factories, some households alike have embarked on selling tiri bread for certain markets and shops.
"No factory produces less than 2,500 breads,he said. "I believe more than 300,000 tiri breads are sent to Sulaimani and Erbil every day from Raniya."
The number of supermarkets and shops designed to sell tiri bread in Erbil is on the rise.
"There is growing demand for tiri bread day after day. It is because people consider it healthier and cheaper than other types of bread. Compared to other breads, it does not expire and contains no sodium," Haji Rafiq Saeed who sells tiri bread, honey and Kurdish traditional vinegar in his shop said.
"There are more than 50 shops designed only to sell tiri bread in Erbil," he added.
Translated by Zhelwan Z. Wali
