Pakistan’s rice exports witnessed an increase of 23% in the financial year 2021-22 and touched $2.511 billion as compared to $2.041 billion during the last fiscal year 2020-21.
According to the recent data released by the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics (PBS), the country exported 4.877 million tonnes of rice in FY22 compared to 3.684 million tonnes in FY21, showing an increase of 32.35%.
Over the last couple of years, lands under rice cultivation have been on the rise. As per the Economic Survey of Pakistan (2021-22), the crop was seeded on 3,537 thousand hectares, displaying a growth of 6.1% as compared to 3,335 thousand hectares a year ago.
The record high production of rice stood at 9.323 million tonnes in 2021-22, improved by 10.7% against the previous year’s production of 8.420 million tonnes.
Read more: Pakistan exported 4.87 million tonnes of rice and fetched $2.5 billion during FY22
Besides the increase in acreage, the growth in rice production is another significant aspect expediting the increase of Pakistan’s rice exports.
Moreover, the renewal of good varieties and the implementation of modern technology are essential factors for obtaining greater yields. Hybrid rice from China has substituted some backward local varieties.
Longping South Asia Seed R&D Centre has raised high-yield varieties with strong stress resistance in Pakistan.
Pakistan Hi-Tech Hybrid Seed Association (PHHSA) Chairman Shahzad Ali Malik said that the regular utilization of hi-tech hybrid seeds in agriculture can considerably contribute to attaining an ambitious $35 billion export target with the slogan of “Grow More, Export More”.
Meanwhile, R&D Centre Chief Scientist Long Chunjiu stated in a recent interview that Pakistan has a huge potential for rice export, in which hybrid rice seeds can play a major role.
Pakistan’s rice export to China during the first six months of this year was worth around $345 million, against the $258 million in the corresponding period of last year, the General Administration of Customs of China (GACC) said in a statement.
