Daily Times

The government has so far procured over 4.902 million metric tons (MMT) of wheat under the grain-procurement campaign for the year 2023-24 against the set target of 7.8 MMT to fulfill the local consumptions and maintain the strategic reserves in the country. Despite the climate change-related challenges, heavy rains and catastrophic floods in the country, the local wheat output during the current season was estimated at 27.5 MMT, which was the highest in the last 10 years, said Food Security Commissioner in the Ministry of National Food Security and Research Imtiaz Ali Gopang. Talking to APP here on Tuesday, he said so far about 63 percent of the assigned procurement targets for the current season were accomplished and the grain procurement drive across the crop-producing areas was in full swing. Under the wheat procurement drive, the Punjab Province had completed 76 percent of its task as it procured about 3.405 MMT of wheat as against the target of 4.500 million metric tons, Gopang added. Meanwhile, the Sindh Province has completed about 46 percent of its procurement targets and procured about 640,629 metric tons of wheat as compared to the set targets of 1.400 MMT, he added. The food security commissioner further informed that the wheat procurement task was completed by 36 percent in Balochistan, whereas Pakistan Agriculture Storage and Services Corporation (PASSCO) completed 46 percent of its procurement. “Balochistan has so far procured about 29,632 metric tons of wheat as against its set targets of 100,000 metric tons and PASSCO procured 826,033 MMT as compared to the targets of 1.800 million metric tons,” he added. It is worth mentioning here that what crop was sown over 21.942 million acres for producing about 28.37 MMT of wheat during crop season 2022-23 for fulfilling the local staple food requirements and maintaining strategic reserves.