Tarbiat Modares University Journal of Agricultural Science and Technology 1680-7073 28 4 2026 07 01 Investigating the Factors Affecting the Export, Efficiency, and Export Capacity of Iranian Dates 815 827 24110 EN Hossein Noroozi Department of Agricultural Economics, Faculty of Agriculture, College of Agriculture and Natural Resources, University of Tehran, Karaj, Islamic Republic of Iran. 0000-0002-6638-2078 Hamed Rafiee Department of Agricultural Economics, Faculty of Agriculture, College of Agriculture and Natural Resources, University of Tehran, Karaj, Islamic Republic of Iran. 0000-0002-1279-6830 Seyed Safdar Hosseini Department of Agricultural Economics, Faculty of Agriculture, College of Agriculture and Natural Resources, University of Tehran, Karaj, Islamic Republic of Iran. Saeed Yazdani Department of Agricultural Economics, Faculty of Agriculture, College of Agriculture and Natural Resources, University of Tehran, Karaj, Islamic Republic of Iran. Air Hossein Chizari Department of Agricultural Economics, Faculty of Agriculture, College of Agriculture and Natural Resources, University of Tehran, Karaj, Islamic Republic of Iran. Journal Article 2025 09 16 This research investigates the factors influencing Iranian date exports by utilizing panel data and employing a fixed effects model from 2001 to 2023. The findings indicate that several factors positively influence date exports. These include trade advantages, the real effective exchange rate, the disparity between Iran's GDP and that of its trading partners, the logarithm of the ratio of export prices to domestic prices, and trade agreements with target countries. Conversely, the cost of exporting agricultural products to the target country and the impact of sanctions negatively affect Iranian date exports. The average efficiency of Iranian date exports is estimated at 0.8735, indicating an export shortfall of about 22%. There is a total of $16.55 million in unused export capacity for dates, compared to actual and potential exports. During the study period, the structure of Iran's date export market varied between a tight and a loose oligopoly. It is crucial to prioritize the enhancement and development of supply chains for Iran's main export products. The main challenges in the supply chain for these products involve acquiring production inputs, as well as the processes of packaging, sorting, and transportation. https://jast.modares.ac.ir/article_24110_a697ab0dcf803186970e7bb5ed0909fb.pdf