Overview
- The federal government approved the one million tonnes import and ordered PASSCO’s existing wheat stocks released to provinces to meet urgent needs, officials said on Friday.
- Punjab has asked for about 1 million tonnes and Sindh for at least 220,000 tonnes, requests that together exceed available federal storage and prompted the import decision.
- Farmers’ leaders and analysts blame the shortfall on policy choices and weak procurement, noting Punjab bought roughly 480,000 tonnes against a three million tonne target this season.
- Traders and millers are pressing for immediate, subsidy-free private imports and have proposed open permission for up to 4 million tonnes to avoid fiscal losses from state-led buying.
- Pakistan relied heavily on imports last year—bringing in nearly 3.5 million tonnes at a cost above $1 billion—and officials warn continuing gaps could keep prices high and strain foreign exchange reserves.