Govt finalises wheat procurement plan

The federal government has finalised a comprehensive wheat procurement plan for the current year and given final shape to the draft of the Interim Wheat Policy 2025, sources said on Saturday.

According to sources in the Ministry of National Food Security and Research, recommendations for the interim policy have been prepared and will be presented to the federal cabinet for approval in the coming weeks.

Under the new plan, the government has set a procurement target of 6.25 million metric tons of wheat for this year. However, unlike previous years, both federal and provincial governments will not purchase wheat directly from farmers. Instead, the procurement process will be carried out through the private sector, a move aimed at improving transparency and efficiency.

Sources said the procurement targets have been distributed among different administrative units. The federal government will procure 1.5 million metric tons, Punjab 2.5 million metric tons, Sindh 1 million metric tons, Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa 0.75 million metric tons, and Balochistan 0.5 million metric tons.

The process will be jointly monitored by the Ministry of Food Security and provincial departments to ensure transparency and fairness in procurement.

The government has fixed the indicative price of wheat at Rs3,500 per 40 kilograms, sources added. The price may be adjusted if international market rates rise.

Sources clarified that the price was not determined under IMF conditions, but rather based on domestic agricultural needs, production costs, and farmers' welfare.

The sources further said that no restrictions will be imposed on inter-provincial movement of wheat this year, a step expected to support market stability and inter-regional trade.

According to the Ministry of Food Security, the main objectives of the interim policy include ensuring transparent procurement through a market-based system, timely payments to farmers, preventing hoarding, and improving the management of wheat reserves.