The country has wheat stock of 6.267 million, which is not only sufficient for domestic consumption but also available for export while bumper crop production is expected during next year. As per the latest data, in September 2012, the government had 9.3 million tons wheat in its godowns, when it started releasing the commodity to flour mills.
Chief of Agriculture Policy Institute (API) Abdul Rauf Chaudhry told Agency here on Friday that about three million tons of wheat was supplied to the flour mills for meeting the domestic consumption for September-November 2012. He said that only four months were left after the new crop would start arriving from May, which would further consolidate the wheat stocks.
Despite the government decision to export about two million tons of wheat to Iran, it was expected that some 1.5 to two million tons would be carried forward, he added. The API Head said there was not a proper mechanism in place for exporting the wheat. “During last six months (July-December), about 351,000 ton wheat has been exported from the country,” he added. He said wheat sowing had increased in Punjab, Sindh and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, while in Balochistan its sowing had decreased due to floods.
He said crop had been sown on about 16.4 million acres against 16 million acres last year’s sowing of 16 million which was up by 0.4 percent, adding that wheat sowing in Sindh was increased by one percent as compared to the sowing of the same period last year, as about 0.98 million hectare of land had been cultivated so far as against the 0.97 million hectare of last year.
Meanwhile, in KP wheat sowing crossed 730,000 hectare mark as against the last year’s sowing on 727,000 hectare, he added. Abdul Rauf said wheat sowing registered decrease in Balochistan due to floods of last two years as it was expected that sowing figures were likely to reach 341,000 hectare during this year as compared the sowing of 388,400 hectare two year before.
