Daily Times

KARACHI: There is a dire need to increase and bettering of pitted and stuffed dates as this process would increase level of value addition.

Dates processing plants one each at Khairpur and Dera Ismail Khan were not in proper conditions while Turbat plant in Balochistan was not functioning ‘up-to-the-mark’, which was established on public private partnership basis.

These plants were built along with cold storage facilities. Pakistan is the third largest country in world exporting dates and with proper attention and appropriate interventions this sector can flourish manifold, said stakeholders.

The annual production of dates in country is estimated at around 540,000 tonnes of which only 87,000 tonnes are exported and the rest are either consumed locally or perish. Pakistan is fifth in exports around the world.

Chief Executive Officer Harvest Trading Ahmad Jawad said country dates exports could be raised to $250 million from current $30 million with introduction of better technology and providing funds facilities to farmers and stakeholders.

Proper processing and packaging is also an issue which should be resolved from the first stage.

Country’s per acre yield of dates has not improved, whereas worldwide production increased by more than 150 percent.

Lacked storage facilities and dull packaging facilities processed dates are exported to United Kingdom, Canada, India, Nepal, Afghanistan, Denmark and pother countries.

Germany and most of the importing countries of dates after enhancing quality and value addition besides turning into by products re-export our dates on more than six-time higher of their respective import price.

If we focus on value addition such as use of dates in preparing date chocolates, jams, sweets and other products, we can manifold our forex earning manifold.

United States Agency for International Development said lack of awareness about best farming practices, improper fruit handling techniques and an absence of developed processing facilities are major hurdles of Pakistan’s exporters and better production.

Pakistan Horticulture Development and Exports Board is also striving hard to modernise dates processing plants in collaboration with Small and Medium Enterprises Development Authority in Balochistan, an executive Board member Shamoon Sadiq said.

The Sindh government is also helping the sector by releasing funds from Export Development Fund.

Around 30 countries including USA, China, India, Japan, European Union, Canada and other countries are buyers. Traders are also working to produce by-products of dates in order to fetch better foreign exchange.

Exports can be stand around Rs 42 million by the end of this export season, and in the long-term, exports is projected to around Rs 26 billion by 2020.