Inflation takes toll on kinnow processing

Expert says 100 factories shut down in Sargodha after experiencing losses

KARACHI:

The mounting cost of doing business coupled with supply-side disruptions amid Covid-19 pandemic has taken a toll on the kinnow processing industry of Pakistan.

Around 100 kinnow processing factories shut down in Sargodha district alone, after experiencing drastic losses on the back of soaring commodity prices and pandemic induced limitations, Pakistan Businesses Forum (PBF) Vice President Ahmad Jawad told The Express Tribune.

Earlier, over 250 such factories were operating in the said district, he added.

Farmers were compelled to buy low quality fertilisers as “the price of good quality urea has surged by 200%”, he underlined.

This had led to an inferior yield, adversely impacting the size and quality of kinnow, he added.

Similarly, the drastic surge in global shipping rates - almost four times in the past two years - had severely hampered the exports of the local kinnow processing industry, he lamented.

Kinnow farmers of Sargodha district were affected the most, as they also felt the brunt of climate change, he mentioned.

Jawad was of the view that Pakistan should now work in the fields of diversification and value addition. He held the opinion that it would maximise the volume of pulp and oil extracted from the fruit.

Explaining further, he said that the orange oil was used in the food industry to provide a natural flavour to the products.

It was also used in cleansers, anti-aging/ anti-wrinkle treatments, body creams and various ointments in the cosmetics sector, he said.

In order to achieve value-addition, the government should facilitate businesses in a bid to enable them to timely acquire the credit facilities from banks besides providing a tax holiday of up to five years, he suggested.

“Currently, the price of orange oil in the international market is $1.55 for 500ml,” he pointed out.

“It is essential to invite foreign investors in this sector and there is dire need for government’s support,” Jawad underlined.

This would not only increase foreign exchange reserves but also benefit farmers, he added.

There is a dire need for government to take progressive measures in this regard, he emphasised.

“Kinnow is an asset as far as the country’s exports are concerned,” he remarked, adding that the European Union was one of the most attractive markets for Pakistani fruits and vegetables, because of its size and the purchasing power of its consumers.

However, Pakistani citrus had an insignificant share in those markets, he lamented.

“The availability of Pakistani kinnow in the European market as a table fruit is irregular and nominal,” Jawad noted.

According to him, Pakistani kinnow was mainly used as a raw material to extract its juice by a few big companies in Europe, but it was not consistently imported as a table fruit.

Published in The Express Tribune, February 6^th, 2022.

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