FINAL REPORT

Apart from vegetable and cereal cultivation, Khovd aimag is famous for its
fruits like seabuckthorn, dwarf- and crabapples, currents or melons which are
growing wild or were introduced in the Manchu period. Out of these, melons
are the most popular ones and honeydew melons are only planted in Khovd. In
autumn, parts of the harvest are sold as far as in Ulaanbaatar.
Photo by D. Tseveenravdan, September 2006
Photo 20: Honeydew Melon
Photo by D. Tseveenravdan, September 2006
Photo 21: Honeydew Melons
Photo 22: Black Currents
Photo by J. Hartwig, June 2006
Photo by J. Hartwig, June 2006
Photo 23: Apple Plantation
The high share of marketed crops described above indicates that farming households from the
Buyant River Delta are increasingly contributing to food security of the local and regional
population. Calculations based on a comparison of the recommended crop consumption per
person 38 with the actual crop harvest show that within the Buyant River Delta in 2005 the
harvest of vegetables and potatoes was significantly higher than the recommended
consumption (Fig. 86). Fruit harvest was slightly below recommended consumption but the
figure only records melon harvest and not the harvest of remaining fruits like dwarf apples,
seabuckthorn or currents.
On the level of Khovd aimag, there is still a surplus of potatoes but a lack of vegetables, fruits
and cereals. If the Western Region is considered as a whole, there is a lack of all kinds of crop
harvest. These data indicate that there is high demand for extension of crop cultivation. In
38 No difference was made between children and adults.
155