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Corporate farming by defence forces gets a jumpstart

KHANEWAL: The cutting-edge corporate agriculture farming Sunday got a jumpstart by the defence forces in a multi-billion dollar move, aiming to ensure national food security and tapping the export market.


“We launched a modern corporate farming project to take Pakistan’s agriculture to new height. Our main focus area has been import-substitution farming so that domestic production can eventually replace billions of dollar worth of imports,” said Maj Gen (Retd) Tahir Aslam, Managing Director & Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of FonGrow, a subsidiary of Fauji Foundation, which is spearheaded by defence institutions.

Aslam termed FonGrow a harbinger of completely mechanised, smart farming in the country as part of a flagship project of Green Pakistan Initiative, recently launched under the auspices of Pakistan Army at a function attended by the prime minister and Chief of the Army Staff.

He was talking to Lahore-based journalists during a media visit to the 2,250-acre site of country’s first corporate farm on Sunday, which is scheduled to be formally inaugurated by prime minister and Army Chief today (Monday).

Tahir said FonGrow was devolving a model that could be replicated by foreign investors at a later stage.

“We strive to expand corporate farms to 100,000 acres for cultivating wheat, cotton, oilseed crops, soybean and sesame in different districts of the country. The Green Initiative eyes corporate farming at one million acres of land by fostering partnership with various foreign and local players,” he added.

“We have set up this platform on the premise to achieve goal of reducing foreign dependency through enhanced local production. Our first trial of maize crop has yielded 20 percent more output than output of progressive farmers and that too with lesser use of water, fertiliser and other inputs.

“The establishment of FonGrow farm is truly the first step towards agricultural revolution. This is a one-of-a-kind agricultural system spread over 2,250 acres at Porowal which is planned to be expanded under a robust development plan in the next five years. It consists of mostly barren piece of land,” he said.

To a question, he made it clear that they were not against or competing with small-scale farmers. Rather, he claimed, this initiative would help introduce best farming practices at different levels.

Muhammad Zahid Aziz, Manager Farms, said the country’s agriculture needs to be expanded both horizontally and vertically with a view to increasing area under cultivation and enhancing per acre yield.

FonGrow is simultaneously targeting both these goals by employing resource conservation technology.

He said similar corporate farming in desert and semi-desert land in Bhakkar, Mankera and Layyah was also being launched.

Eng Mushtaq Ahmed Gill, Irrigation Consultant, said high efficiency agriculture had been the hallmark of FonGrow corporate farming where the center pivot irrigation made it possible to conserve water up to 90 percent.

It is sheer departure from conventional flood irrigation where most of water is lost before reaching the plants.








 
Inko dushman ki zameen par kabza k kiay bharti kia tha , yeh apni zameenon par kabza karny lag gay 🤣
 
We need to have the army involved in deep sea mining as well right off our coast and oil exploration.
Koi aisa kaam nahi karna inn colonial sepoys nay jis say qom aur mulk ko faida ho...Plus, it requires technical know how, which this sepoy army seriously lacks. Their technical competence only goes as far as cement and sarya...
 

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None of these heavily subsidized and forced market leaders have any global standing or exports to speak of. They are not your TATA's or Infosys' and other mega multi billion dollar revenue generating companies that our neighbors' private sector has managed to cultivate. And that was because their army didn't impose their own mediocre enterprises on them and forced their market supremacy by eliminating competitors from the private sector.

What next, fauji teen daba factory getting 50% profit margins...
 
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I hope Taliban take over Pakistan, merge it with Afghanistan and call it Khorasan
 
Everyone is missing the point here.. All these visits by whisky muneer to gulf and then the announcing of so called corporate farming. Essentially gulfies paying for land to produce crops for their own food security, gulfies manage everything in exchange Faujeets get paid for ground rent which should go to the national coffers.. but instead Faujeets are lining their own pockets and throwing some scraps in the way of PDM to keep them on board…

And ladies & gentlement, this is exactly what is happening.

UAE created some huge projects with great amount of money within their country using vertical farming and drip irrigation etc., but it couldn't bear fruit due to many technical reasons which I read a while ago but have now forgotten.

Basically vertical farming and these new techs are good for small scale production, but to feed a country you cannot rely on that, and good old farming is the best way to go.

So they turned to Pakistan. Thoray say paisay phenko, and voila, we will dance to your tune.

We need to have the army involved in deep sea mining as well right off our coast and oil exploration.

It already is, check out Mari petroleum.
 
Yes billions of extra dollars in farming produce for the generals. Hell will freeze over before you see any benefit for the Pakistani people.

Anyone else heard of US army wheat? How about British army olives? Wait what of even Indian army sugar cane? Me neither.

What a pathetic state of affairs.

An additional problem is this "corporate farming" will pay NO taxes to the goverment as they are listed as charities, so for every market they enter, they have an uncompetitive advantage when it comes to the cost of their products as they dont pay taxes, so they will always outbid and outcompete the private sector. This means, the private sector in Pakistan cannot grow in areas that the fauji's are interested in, or already sitting on ......
 
Military precision is required in modern day agriculture.

I call upon the Government to provide a platform for private endeavors in the sector.
hear hear !

they can't win any war, can't run the government, so let them at least try growing tomato with or without the e
...and given the Indian ban on rice , grow rice too. with the e.
 
The other non-military institutions that Pak Army owns, what kind of revolutions they have brought till date in their respective sectors? How many billions of dollars have they contributed towards national exchequer till date? Where is all the money going from all these institutions?

Heck PA is not new to corporate farming, please shed some light on the revolution they have already bought to corporate farming?





Future billionaire:


View attachment 941099
Pretty much everything they do is pretty much world class, from best in housing to best in everything
Economy was not their concern up till now
 
An additional problem is this "corporate farming" will pay NO taxes to the goverment as they are listed as charities, so for every market they enter, they have an uncompetitive advantage when it comes to the cost of their products as they dont pay taxes, so they will always outbid and outcompete the private sector. This means, the private sector in Pakistan cannot grow in areas that the fauji's are interested in, or already sitting on ......
if the private sector cant compete, thats on them. Sorry free market means competition.
 
They will end up monopolizing food market by force. Private sector will evaporate and Farmers will be left landless. Investors ( Gulfies) will have First right on produce and local population will have less food security. How can Civilian governments in Center and Provinces not see this? They must have educated people.
 
KHANEWAL: The cutting-edge corporate agriculture farming Sunday got a jumpstart by the defence forces in a multi-billion dollar move, aiming to ensure national food security and tapping the export market.


“We launched a modern corporate farming project to take Pakistan’s agriculture to new height. Our main focus area has been import-substitution farming so that domestic production can eventually replace billions of dollar worth of imports,” said Maj Gen (Retd) Tahir Aslam, Managing Director & Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of FonGrow, a subsidiary of Fauji Foundation, which is spearheaded by defence institutions.

Aslam termed FonGrow a harbinger of completely mechanised, smart farming in the country as part of a flagship project of Green Pakistan Initiative, recently launched under the auspices of Pakistan Army at a function attended by the prime minister and Chief of the Army Staff.

He was talking to Lahore-based journalists during a media visit to the 2,250-acre site of country’s first corporate farm on Sunday, which is scheduled to be formally inaugurated by prime minister and Army Chief today (Monday).

Tahir said FonGrow was devolving a model that could be replicated by foreign investors at a later stage.

“We strive to expand corporate farms to 100,000 acres for cultivating wheat, cotton, oilseed crops, soybean and sesame in different districts of the country. The Green Initiative eyes corporate farming at one million acres of land by fostering partnership with various foreign and local players,” he added.

“We have set up this platform on the premise to achieve goal of reducing foreign dependency through enhanced local production. Our first trial of maize crop has yielded 20 percent more output than output of progressive farmers and that too with lesser use of water, fertiliser and other inputs.

“The establishment of FonGrow farm is truly the first step towards agricultural revolution. This is a one-of-a-kind agricultural system spread over 2,250 acres at Porowal which is planned to be expanded under a robust development plan in the next five years. It consists of mostly barren piece of land,” he said.

To a question, he made it clear that they were not against or competing with small-scale farmers. Rather, he claimed, this initiative would help introduce best farming practices at different levels.

Muhammad Zahid Aziz, Manager Farms, said the country’s agriculture needs to be expanded both horizontally and vertically with a view to increasing area under cultivation and enhancing per acre yield.

FonGrow is simultaneously targeting both these goals by employing resource conservation technology.

He said similar corporate farming in desert and semi-desert land in Bhakkar, Mankera and Layyah was also being launched.

Eng Mushtaq Ahmed Gill, Irrigation Consultant, said high efficiency agriculture had been the hallmark of FonGrow corporate farming where the center pivot irrigation made it possible to conserve water up to 90 percent.

It is sheer departure from conventional flood irrigation where most of water is lost before reaching the plants.








One lakh acres seems to be still a very measly aim, given the possibilities that exist in Pakistan based on below article. It says Pakistan has 54 million acres of cultivable land, but only half of it is cultivated as of now. Am sure the PA might be aiming for all the rest, and that's huge.

https://www.thenews.com.pk/print/1088663-corporate-farming-the-future-of-agriculture

Also the bolded part in the article, where the retd General says they aren't competing with small scale farmers isn't exactly true. Even if its not their aim, they eventually will price out the small farmers. If we check the article above, with such low land holding of just 6 acres per farmer (discounting the bigger fish of course), can simply never compete with Corporate farming.

Eventually this if successful, will monopolize farm produce completely. As the small farmer when unable to compete, will give up their land to these Corporate firms. Not a bad plan if it succeeds, as Corporate farming yields are higher compared to traditional farming. Will be a masterstroke, as PA this way will control food and the gun.
 
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