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Wheat production expected to break records

 By Sher Baz Khan

 

Labourers unload wheat from a delivery van at a Wheat Procurement Centre.—APP

ISLAMABAD: Wheat production in the country appears set to surpass even the most optimistic of estimates.

A survey conducted in 14 districts of Punjab over last two weeks puts the average increase in production at 30.6 per cent of the past season. If the 2007-08 wheat production of Punjab (15.6 million tones) is projected at the same ratio, the 2008-09 wheat output amounts to a massive 20.4 million tonnes. Even if the production in other three provinces is considered to have remained static, the country’s overall production is likely to have gone up to 25.7 million tonnes.

The survey was jointly conducted by Punjab Lok Sujag and South Asia Partnership-Pakistan in 14 districts. This cluster of districts produces around half of the wheat in Punjab.The survey shows that the wheat production rose to a high level as an accumulated impact of rise in both the area under wheat and per acre yield.
 
The farmers increased area under wheat by 9.8 per cent of the past season while per acre yield also rose by 19 per cent.The main reason for increase in production was the fact that the government had raised the Wheat Support Price by an unprecedented 46 per cent for the current season (from Rs 650 to 950 per 40 kg) encouraging farmers to ramp up production. ‘The massive production has, however, become an insurmountable challenge for the government’s wheat procurement departments that now find themselves over stressed with the burden of buying the produce,’ says the survey report issued by the organisation.

Only two of the survey districts, Narowal and Toba Tek Singh, showed a negative trend as area under wheat reduced there. Narowal also had to face a decline in yield as weather in the area had not been favorable resulting in an overall decline in production. Toba, however, compensated the reduction in the area by better yield to produce more wheat than the previous year.
In contrast many other districts have thrived on the back of high yield alone. Attock increased area under wheat by only 1.8 per cent, yet a high increase of 28 per cent in yield resulted in increased production.

Lodhran surpassed all other districts in rise in yield as the per acre wheat production in the district rose by a hefty 57.6 per cent.

Rise in wheat production in Okara was mainly contributed by a big increase in area under wheat. Okara and adjoining areas are the hub of potato production that failed to fetch a good price in the previous seasons. This coupled with the ensured high price for wheat wooed a number of farmers to replace potato with wheat. An additional rise in yield resulted in the big increase of 52 per cent in wheat production in Okara.

Increase in yield and in area dedicated to wheat has been registered by all farms. ‘Small farmers have been afraid that it might become difficult for them to buy wheat for home consumption at high rates at any point in the coming year,’ the report says. While medium and large farmers have realised that wheat cultivation had become a profitable activity for the first time ever. They have abandoned other cash crops performing poorly at the market and opted to grow wheat.

Dawn: Wednesday, 06 May, 2009 | 08:17 PM PST |