Despite soaring domestic food inflation, Pakistan’s exports of agricultural and food products surged by a substantial 37.4% in the first quarter of the current fiscal year compared to the same period last year.
The significant increase in food product exports is driven by several factors, including the unprecedented depreciation of the rupee, ongoing supply chain disruptions, and higher international market prices, contributing to a tremendous surge in the demand for food products.
The Trade Development Authority of Pakistan (TDAP), operating under the Ministry of Commerce, disclosed the most recent data on the increase in food product exports on Wednesday.
Zubair Motiwalla, the CEO of TDAP, expressed optimism about the outlook for Pakistan’s agricultural and culinary product exports.
He predicts that by 2023-24, this industry’s exports will exceed $7 billion.
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According to TDAP data, exports of sesame seed (up 427 percent), maize/corn (up 109 percent), ethyl alcohol (up 559 percent), livestock (up 16 percent), rice (up 14 percent), fruits and vegetables (up 11.8 percent), and fish and fish products (up three percent) saw significant increases.
Pakistan’s exports of sesame seed reached $182.2 million from July to September 2023-24, marking a 435 percent increase from the $34 million recorded during the same period in the previous year.
Similarly, maize exports increased by 109.32 percent, from $60.62 million in 1QFY23 to $130 million in 1QFY24. Pakistan’s maize exports have skyrocketed due to soaring global agricultural commodity prices after the Russian-Ukrainian conflict. Maize is primarily distributed in Oman, Vietnam, Malaysia, and Korea.
Pakistan also exported $126.81 million of ethyl alcohol in 1QFY24, increasing 559.1% from $19.23 million in 1QFY23.
Meat exports from Pakistan increased by 16.54 percent, from $96.4 million in 1QFY23 to $112.36 million in 1QFY24. This growth is attributed to the entry of three new markets: Jordan, Egypt, and Uzbekistan.
Furthermore, several new companies are registering to export meat to the GGC, UAE, and Saudi Arabia. Malaysia has also authorized the export/processing of three additional slaughterhouses. And market access was granted to one meat exporting company for shipments of heat-treated meat to China.
