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Wheat output may top 25m tons
Wheat output is likely to cross the target of 25 million tons this season, beating last years production of 23.7 million tons.
If the crop condition is factored in and the farmers are to be believed, Punjab alone is likely to contribute 20 million tons.
However, according to the Space and Upper Atmosphere Research Commission (Suparco), which monitors crops through satellite imagery, wheat production would be around 24.5 million tons.
According to Suparcos estimates, Punjab will produce 18.7 million tons, Sindh 3.9 million tons, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa 1.3 million tons and Balochistan 0.6 million tons.
If all goes as expected, the country may have three million tons of surplus wheat because domestic consumption is 22 million tons. The federal government has 2.5 million tons of strategic reserves.
Punjab, which produces around 80 per cent of the countrys wheat output, has a previous record of 18.4 million tons.
The Punjab Crop Reporting Wing had put the expected production at 18.165 million tons a fortnight ago when temperatures rose during March. It has yet to furnish its latest figures.
The farmers, however, doubt the estimates of both Suparco and Punjab Crop Reporting Wing, saying that the latter always underreports production figures to be on the safe side, and the former, although closer to reality, has still not developed enough to be taken as a final authority.
The ground realities, nevertheless, point towards a record crop, insist the farmers who base their claim on a host of positive factors that facilitated the crop throughout its 120-day life cycle in Punjab.According to them, quality seeds, especially in flood-hit low productivity areas, have made a huge difference. The Punjab government had supplied 53,000 tons of seed to these areas and a host of NGOs, led by the Food and Agriculture Organisation, also provided high-quality seed.
The national usage of inputs, especially fertiliser, had increased by around six per cent during the crucial months of November and December, but dropped in January when gas loadshedding caused a hike in urea price.
The drop in urea usage was compensated by better climate and timely rains throughout the country. Temperature in March remained ideal except for a few days.
The extension services had improved because the Punjab government had moved its entire official machinery into flood-affected areas.
All these factors will definitely lead to around 20 million tons of wheat crop, which leads to next question of procurement arrangements, Farooq Bajwa of the Farmers Associates Pakistan said. He said the farmers were worried about the glut, price crash and official limitations to clear tradable surplus in the market.
An official in the Punjab Food Department said: Although one cannot be sure about the finality of the production figures, all signs have been positive. Most of the crop was sown in time, water availability was improved by floods and subsequent rains, inputs usage increased, weed control was much better this year and extension services improved with concentration of the entire official machinery in the flood-hit areas. All these factors must yield a better crop.
Wheat output may top 25m tons | Newspaper | DAWN.COM
Wheat output is likely to cross the target of 25 million tons this season, beating last years production of 23.7 million tons.
If the crop condition is factored in and the farmers are to be believed, Punjab alone is likely to contribute 20 million tons.
However, according to the Space and Upper Atmosphere Research Commission (Suparco), which monitors crops through satellite imagery, wheat production would be around 24.5 million tons.
According to Suparcos estimates, Punjab will produce 18.7 million tons, Sindh 3.9 million tons, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa 1.3 million tons and Balochistan 0.6 million tons.
If all goes as expected, the country may have three million tons of surplus wheat because domestic consumption is 22 million tons. The federal government has 2.5 million tons of strategic reserves.
Punjab, which produces around 80 per cent of the countrys wheat output, has a previous record of 18.4 million tons.
The Punjab Crop Reporting Wing had put the expected production at 18.165 million tons a fortnight ago when temperatures rose during March. It has yet to furnish its latest figures.
The farmers, however, doubt the estimates of both Suparco and Punjab Crop Reporting Wing, saying that the latter always underreports production figures to be on the safe side, and the former, although closer to reality, has still not developed enough to be taken as a final authority.
The ground realities, nevertheless, point towards a record crop, insist the farmers who base their claim on a host of positive factors that facilitated the crop throughout its 120-day life cycle in Punjab.According to them, quality seeds, especially in flood-hit low productivity areas, have made a huge difference. The Punjab government had supplied 53,000 tons of seed to these areas and a host of NGOs, led by the Food and Agriculture Organisation, also provided high-quality seed.
The national usage of inputs, especially fertiliser, had increased by around six per cent during the crucial months of November and December, but dropped in January when gas loadshedding caused a hike in urea price.
The drop in urea usage was compensated by better climate and timely rains throughout the country. Temperature in March remained ideal except for a few days.
The extension services had improved because the Punjab government had moved its entire official machinery into flood-affected areas.
All these factors will definitely lead to around 20 million tons of wheat crop, which leads to next question of procurement arrangements, Farooq Bajwa of the Farmers Associates Pakistan said. He said the farmers were worried about the glut, price crash and official limitations to clear tradable surplus in the market.
An official in the Punjab Food Department said: Although one cannot be sure about the finality of the production figures, all signs have been positive. Most of the crop was sown in time, water availability was improved by floods and subsequent rains, inputs usage increased, weed control was much better this year and extension services improved with concentration of the entire official machinery in the flood-hit areas. All these factors must yield a better crop.
Wheat output may top 25m tons | Newspaper | DAWN.COM
