Tuesday, February 10, 2009
By Jawwad Rizvi
LAHORE: Newly appointed US Agricultural Counsellor in Pakistan Joseph M Carroll visited different agriculture departments of Punjab and the federal government in order to deliberate on relevant issues with stakeholders.In this regard, he also held a meeting with the Pakistan Oilseed Development Board (PODB) at the provincial directorate with stakeholders of the oilseed sector also present for strengthening the oilseed trade with the technical/financial collaboration of US Department of Agriculture (USDA).He briefed the participants of the meeting about USDA’s ongoing activities and future plans in Pakistan. He showed interest in enhancement of local oilseed production through technical support and development of strong linkages helpful in promotion of bilateral trade in the sector.PODB Provincial Director Syed Nasir Ali Shah threw light on the activities of the Board for the promotion of oilseed crops and oil-bearing trees, sources in the PODB Punjab Directorate said.He pointed out that wild olive (Kahu) was available in abundance (3.5 million plants approximately) in Potohar and Khushab areas of the Punjab province. It provides a vast scope for the conversion of this natural plantation to oil-bearing species and establishment of olive orchards on marginal lands through saplings to supplement the oilseed production, he added.On the occasion, the representatives of solvent industries discussed production and procurement of indigenous oilseed crops like sunflower, canola and soybean, their crushing, marketing and use of by-products.The meeting discussed the available paraphernalia of the crushing industry helpful in handling the import of huge quantities of oilseeds in Pakistan. Discussing the current situation of oilseed cultivation, the Provincial Director PODB said that low priority to oilseed crops and announcement of attractive wheat price by the government was likely to have a negative impact on the cultivation of canola and sunflower, being the non-traditional crops.He suggested an early announcement of sunflower support price and its procurement through Pakistan Agriculture Storage and Supplies Corporation as an immediate remedy to restore the confidence of growers.The meeting also discussed the prospects of cultivation of soybean in Pakistan and US support in this regard. It was proposed that American Soybean Association (ASA) should be asked to conduct a technical study for soybean cultivation in different ecological zones of Pakistan in collaboration with PODB.Summing up the discussion, PODB officials requested the participants to initiate proposals, identifying the fields of common interest, where the US technical/ financial assistance is desired to enhance the local oilseed crop production for achieving self-sufficiency in edible oils, the sources concluded.
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