TEHRAN, Iran (AP) — Iran has ordered a six-month ban on pistachio exports to try to control the price of the nut, which doubled in the past month.

Pistachios are among Iran’s top non-oil exports and widely consumed at home, bringing in an average of $1.5 billion a year and providing work for hundreds of thousands of people. Iran was long the world’s largest pistachio exporter, with over 200,000 tons a year, but was surpassed last year by the United States.