Iran is holding talks to import 1 million tons of wheat from Russia to export as flour to neighbors Iraq and Afghanistan. Iranian flour millers are operating at 50 percent of capacity and are seeking the wheat to boost sales. Officials from the Iran Food Confederation and Iran millers met with the Russian agriculture ministry in Moscow last week to discuss the trade. Iran is already one of the biggest suppliers of flour to Iraq. Iran’s wheat consumption will be a record 18.35 million metric tons in the 2017-18 marketing year, exceeding domestic production of 15 million tons, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture. Rain for the new harvest was a little lower than last year, so the crop may be smaller, Zargaran said. Wheat imports for domestic use are currently banned to support local farmers.