Capital to host wheat conference

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s most important crop, wheat, is in the spotlight at the National Agriculture Research Center that is hosting a two-day Wheat Productivity Enhancement Program meeting (WPEP) this week.

Wheat accounts for 60% of the daily caloric intake of the average Pakistani and is grown on over 9 million hectares of land throughout the country. WPEP’s goal is to protect and enhance wheat productivity, according to statement issued on Wednesday.



Wheat rusts, which have caused insurmountable crop losses during the past 50 years, will be a major talking point during the meeting. A wheat-rust epidemic will threaten Pakistan’s food security which is why USDA is supporting efforts to strengthen Pakistan’s wheat-rust surveillance efforts, the statement added.

Published in The Express Tribune, September 7^th, 2017.

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