Raza Khan

Pakistan’s Ministry of Commerce has identified Iraq, Turkmenistan, Kuwait, China, the Philippines, Thailand, Turkey and the European Union countries as potential markets for potato exports. The ministry said in its report that Central Asian countries, particularly Kazakhstan, are the most lucrative markets for Pakistani potato as they are diverting to new potato exporting countries to meet their demand.

Iraq, Kuwait, China, the Philippines, Thailand, the EU and Turkey can also be the new markets that regularly import potatoes, the report said. Iraq, in particular, is a very lucrative market with a positive return. It was suggested that direct exports of potato to Iraq and indirect exports through Iran should be streamlined.

As of last year, the top export destinations for Pakistani potato were Afghanistan, Sri Lanka, the United Arab Emirates, Qatar, and Russia. Pakistan’s potato exports grew by 12.56% to $114.13 million in the fiscal year 2021-22 compared to the previous year, according to the Ministry of Commerce.

According to the Ministry of National Food Security and Research, the country’s potato production grew by 70% to 7.74 million tons in 2021 compared to 4.55 million tons in 2020. Major production is concentrated in Punjab province (93.5%) followed by Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (5.17%), Balochistan (1%), and Sindh (0.33%), said the report.

Data from the 2021 trade map shows that Pakistan contributed at least $112 million to the $4.4 billion global potato market. In the last decade, Pakistan produced not only enough potato to cater to its local needs, but had surplus to export except in 2010 and 2014.

According to the Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO), China, India, Ukraine, Russia, and the United States are the top five potato producing countries in the world. In its report, the Ministry of Commerce pointed out certain issues related to potato production and exports. The use of substandard seed for production and inadequate fertilisers resulted in low yield.

To increase the yield, a focus on the control of diseases like white fly and others is required, the report suggested. “Another major constraint is poor transportation means and the absence of cold storage infrastructure, which lead to low quality,” the report pointed out. To overcome this issue, the government must work with the private sector and invest in developing better infrastructure so that production and quality are not compromised, the report suggested.

“Moreover, the industry should go for value-added products of potato. For this purpose, an investment in processing units is required,” it said. The report further recommended that the government should take promotional initiatives and provide budgetary support for market access in a bid to enhance potato export.

Vice President of Potato Growers Association (PGA) Chaudhry Maqsood Ahmad Jutt said in an interview that Pakistan lacks an efficient potato production and processing system. “We don’t have new varieties of seeds and technical capacity,” Jutt said, adding that farmers are less trained about seed, fertilisers and soil.

“The cost of imported seed is high and most farmers rely on poor quality seed due to shortage of funds,” he added. Jutt said that China can be a huge market for Pakistani potatoes because the price of the vegetable is higher in China. He added that Pakistan already fulfils all international standards and exports potato to almost all continents.

Credit : Independent News Pakistan-WealthPk