KARACHI: At the advent of the new kinnow season, Pakistan has reduced its export target for the fruit by about 70,000 tons, citing tough competition in the international market and deteriorating quality of citrus in the country, exporters said on Friday.
“Export of kinnow from Pakistan has started and we have set a target of 300,000 metric tons that will help generate $195 million in revenue,” Waheed Ahmed, Patron-in-Chief of All Pakistan Fruit and Vegetable Exporters, Importers and Merchants Association (PFVA), told Arab News.
Pakistani firms expect kinnow production of 2.2 million tons during the current season and will export 20 percent of it.
Punjab is the center of production and supply of citrus fruits where about 85 percent of the citrus production area is covered by kinnow variety followed by Musambi (10%), Fruiter (4%), Blood Red (1%).
Last year, Pakistani exporters set a target of 350,000 tons, though they ultimately sold 370,000 tons and generated $222 million in export revenue for the country.
While they acknowledged that they had earned record revenue in 2018, exporters said their losses were also record high due to stiff competition in the Russian market.
“The target has been slashed because exporters had to suffer huge financial losses of up to $6 million in the Russian market. Exporters were shy of taking risk this time and reduced the target by 50,000 tons,” Ahmed said.
“No new markets are included as the export destination this year,” he continued. “Until the Food Security Department resolves the issue of quarantine with Thailand and other countries, new markets cannot be tapped.”
Due to the serious issues of quality, the PFVA is abiding by a self-imposed ban since 2014 on export of kinnow to Europe, a big market for the Pakistani fruit.
The European market would offer better price for Pakistani kinnow compared to other conventional international markets, if the country’s resumed exports increased by 50 percent, said the PFVA chief.
Exporters say the country has not introduced new varieties of kinnow for decades and the existing varieties had exhausted. They also point out that other countries had developed many varieties of the fruit.
“We need to develop at least three to four new varieties, including seedless citrus with enhanced shelf life. We need to enhance the cultivation area as well,” Ahmed noted.
Exporters say the existing kinnow orchards have already completed their life cycle and do not have adequate resistance to protect against the effect of climatic changes and diseases, raising serious quality issues.
“With improved quality and shelf life, the country can earn $1 billion in five years,” Ahmed said. “This can be achieved with extensive research and development (R&D). Otherwise, the existing export of citrus fruits would be badly affected.”
He also called for the resumption of exports to Iran which discontinued nine years ago, resulting in the loss of $40 million per annum.
“Pakistan can export around 80,000 to 90,000 tons of kinnow to Iran,” Ahmed said, questioning the wisdom of allowing import of tomatoes from Iran but not availing the opportunity of exporting kinnow to that country.
Pakistan targets $195 million through kinnow export this year
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Pakistan targets $195 million through kinnow export this year
- Last year, the country earned the highest export revenue of $222 million by exporting 370,000 tons of the fruit
- Lack of new varieties, declining quality, and absence of quarantine protocol posing major export challenges
‘No formal meeting’ held between Pakistan and India at SCO summit, says foreign office
- Foreign office spokesperson says the deputy PM only exchanged ‘pleasantries’ with Indian minister
- India’s Subramanyam Jaishankar was the first senior official from Delhi to visit Pakistan after a decade
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s Deputy Prime Minister Ishaq Dar did not hold a formal meeting with Indian External Affairs Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar at the Shanghai Cooperation Organization Summit (SHO), the foreign office clarified Thursday, saying that viral images of the two officials seated together at a luncheon were simply an exchange of pleasantries.
Nuclear-armed India and Pakistan are bitter adversaries with longstanding political tensions, having fought three wars and numerous skirmishes since they were carved out of the subcontinent’s partition in 1947.
The Indian minister was the first top official from New Delhi to visit Pakistan after nearly a decade. During the visit, a picture of Dar and Jaishankar was shared by media outlets, where the two ministers could be seen engaged in a conversation while sharing a seat next to each other at the official SCO lunch.
This led to speculations and conjectures by political analysts, with some saying the two officials were discussing cricket and trying to break the ice between the arch-rival neighbors.
“There has been no formal meeting between Pakistan and India at the foreign minister’s level including at the SCO,” foreign office spokesperson Mumtaz Zahra Baloch said on Thursday.
She said it was common for delegations in multilateral settings to “exchange pleasantries” and hold informal conversations over lunch and dinner, especially between the hosts and participating guests.
Relations between India and Pakistan have been particularly sour since 2019 when Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi revoked the limited autonomy of Indian-administered Kashmir. The move was celebrated across India but led Pakistan to suspend bilateral trade and downgrade diplomatic ties with New Delhi.
Kashmir is divided between India and Pakistan but claimed by both in full.
Before departing Pakistan, Jaishankar thanked Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, Deputy PM Dar and the Pakistan government for the “hospitalities and courtesies” extended to him during the visit.
Pakistan’s Information Minister Ataullah Tarar said that none of the two countries requested a bilateral meeting, though he termed the Indian minister’s presence at the SCO as an “ice breaker.”
Pakistan condemns Israel’s ‘deliberate’ attacks on UN peacekeepers in Lebanon
- Pakistan’s foreign office stresses peacekeepers must be able to fulfill their mission without fear of attack, obstruction
- Pakistan reiterates Israel must be held accountable for its ‘war crimes’ and ‘crimes against humanity’ in the region
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan on Thursday condemned Israel for “deliberately” targeting the United Nations Interim Forces in Lebanon (UNIFIL), saying it was vital for peacekeepers to be able to fulfill their mission without fear of attack or obstruction.
The UN mission has been stationed in southern Lebanon to monitor hostilities in the area that has witnessed intense clashes this month between Israeli forces and Iran-backed Hezbollah fighters.
Since launching its ground incursion in Lebanon in early October, Israel has fired on several front-line UNIFIL positions, even as its stated objective is only to dismantle Hezbollah’s infrastructure in the Arab state.
Two UN peacekeepers were wounded by an Israeli strike near a UNIFIL watchtower earlier this month, leading to criticism from about 50 countries contributing troops to the 10,000-strong force.
“Pakistan strongly condemns the deliberate and unlawful attacks by Israeli forces on the United Nations interim force in Lebanon,” foreign office spokesperson Mumtaz Zahra Baloch said in her weekly media briefing in Islamabad.
“The peacekeepers must be able to fulfill their mission without fear of attack or obstruction,” she continued, adding that despite such attacks, UNIFIL had managed to remain operational.
The spokesperson said Pakistan wanted the international community to ask Israel to end its aggressive actions against UNIFIL while also seeking a ceasefire against the people of Palestine and Lebanon.
“Israel should also be held accountable for its war crimes and crimes against humanity and the people of Palestine should be protected from Israeli aggression,” she added.
Baloch said Pakistan also condemned the “brutal and indiscriminate Israeli airstrikes on Beit Lahiya,” a town in northern Gaza which resulted in the tragic loss of over 80 Palestinian lives on Sunday.
“Targeting densely populated residential areas without warning and collective punishment of civilians and depriving them of food, water, and essential medicines constitute war crimes,” she added.
The UN agency for Palestinian refugees (UNRWA) said on Wednesday that an UNRWA employee was killed in a strike on a vehicle in Gaza.
At least 223 UNRWA staff members have been killed, and two-thirds of the agency’s facilities in Gaza damaged or destroyed since the war began early last year, its head, Philippe Lazzarini, said last month.
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PM Sharif pledges to eradicate polio with global support amid surge in cases
- The PM’s World Polio Day message comes at a time when Pakistan reported its 40th case this year
- He promises ‘robust’ public health system to safeguard future generations from the paralyzing disease
ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Thursday vowed to make Pakistan polio-free with global support, promising to build a “robust” health system to safeguard future generations amid a major surge in the crippling disease.
Pakistan has reported 40 polio cases in 2024, compared to only six last year, with most cases involving children in impoverished areas due to logistical challenges, parental refusal, and security threats. The southern Balochistan province has been the hardest hit. Militant groups, particularly in the northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) province, have targeted polio workers and their security escorts, labeling these vaccination campaigns as foreign conspiracies.
In a message on World Polio Day, the Pakistani PM reiterated his commitment to raising awareness for eradicating the disease, as the country reported its latest case this year in KP’s Kohat district.
“Pakistan is committed to becoming polio-free, and together, with the support of our citizens and global partners, we will achieve this goal,” he said. “It’s about building a robust public health system and safeguarding the health of future generations.”
Sharif urged every parent to vaccinate their children, calling on community leaders to spread the message of polio eradication. He said the government was improving the health infrastructure, increasing vaccine coverage and combatting misinformation.
According to the World Health Organization, Pakistan and Afghanistan are the only two countries where polio remains endemic, making eradication efforts in both states critical to global health. The prime minister described the regional collaboration with Afghanistan as “vital” to control cross-border transmission.
“Due to the tireless work of our health workers and international partners like WHO, UNICEF, and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, we have made significant progress in reducing polio cases,” he added.
“However, challenges remain, including security concerns, misinformation, and access to remote areas. Despite these obstacles, our health workers continue to work bravely to vaccinate every child.”
Many in Pakistan believe the conspiracy theory that polio vaccines are part of a plot by Westerners to sterilize the country’s population. The masses’ doubts regarding polio campaigns were exacerbated in 2011 when the US Central Intelligence Agency set up a fake vaccination program to gather intelligence on former Al-Qaeda chief Osama bin Laden.
Violent attacks on polio volunteers and security personnel guarding them are common in Pakistan.
Pakistan court orders Imran Khan’s appearance today as his wife released on bail
- Khan has not physically appeared in a court for over a year, though he has been tried in prison
- His wife, Bushra Bibi, secured a bail on Wednesday before she was released in the afternoon
ISLAMABAD: The Islamabad High Court (IHC) on Thursday ordered the administration of Central Prison Rawalpindi to produce jailed former prime minister Imran Khan by 3 PM to facilitate a meeting with his lawyers, as his wife Bushra Bibi was released after securing bail a day earlier.
The development follows Khan’s legal team moving the court, complaining that prison officials were preventing them and the ex-premier’s family from meeting him. Khan has been imprisoned for over a year, facing various charges, including corruption and sedition.
Currently, he is incarcerated in the state repository case, involving the possession of a jewelry set comprising a ring, bracelet, necklace and earrings gifted to his wife by a foreign dignitary. The couple allegedly undervalued the set and retained it at a lower price.
Bibi was released from jail after spending 265 days in the same case after the IHC granted her bail on Wednesday.
“Bring Imran Khan to Islamabad High Court at 3 PM to arrange his meeting with his lawyers,” Justice Ijaz Ishaq Khan remarked during the hearing. “I know you won’t implement my orders, but let me issue directions.”
The judge’s remark came amid an ongoing tussle between the executive and the judiciary, with the latter accusing the country’s powerful military and intelligence agencies of exerting pressure to secure favorable verdicts in political cases, particularly those involving Khan.
The military and intelligence agencies have denied these allegations, maintaining that they do not interfere in political matters.
Khan has not physically appeared in a court since August last year, with all hearings being held in the high-security Rawalpindi prison due to security concerns.
For the last two weeks, the Punjab government has banned all meetings with Khan and other prisoners in the jail, citing security reasons.
“A contempt of court petition was filed by the legal team after the jail administration, following Punjab government orders, banned meetings with Imran Khan, defying clear instructions from the court of Justice Ijaz Ishaq to arrange a meeting via video link if otherwise not possible,” Khan’s Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party said in a statement.
Khan’s legal team has struggled to secure his release, arguing that all charges against him are fabricated to keep him out of politics.
The PTI also confirmed that a bail bond for his wife was submitted in the court earlier in the day, leading to her release in the afternoon.
At SCO dinner gala, Pakistani chef crafted meatless menu for Indian delegates
- Asad Monga was asked to come to Islamabad to oversee the food served to foreign dignitaries
- He says Pakistan should develop a service-based economy focusing on hospitality, culinary arts
KARACHI: A Karachi-based chef, specially flown to Islamabad to oversee meals for foreign dignitaries at the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) Summit, said this week his team ensured diversity in the menu to respect cultural sensitivities, recalling they avoided serving red meat to the Indian delegation.
The 23rd SCO Council of Heads of Government took place on October 15 and 16, bringing together political leaders from Russia, China, India, Kazakhstan, Tajikistan and other participating nations, including Pakistan.
Chef Asad Monga, 32, was invited to join the culinary experts at Islamabad’s popular Serena Hotel for the summit’s lunch and dinner services.
He informed the menu not only reflected international flavors but also highlighted local Pakistani dishes such as mutton chops and flatbread with minced meat filling. However, his team was also sensitive to the dietary preferences of the visiting delegates.
“[It was] just a good, well rounded mix of food to showcase our regional capabilities as people and as cooks, and also keeping in mind the diverse set of people that were coming to eat the food so that it registers with their palette also,” he told Arab News on Tuesday.
“We couldn’t serve red meat to the Indian delegates, so we had a vegetarian and chicken-based menu for that,” he added.
Indian External Affairs Minister Subramanyam Jaishankar, who led his country’s delegation at the SCO Summit, was the first high-profile official from New Delhi to visit Pakistan in nearly a decade.
Although he did not hold formal bilateral meetings in Islamabad, Pakistani officials described his trip as an “ice breaker” amid hopes in both countries for a thaw in the frosty relations between the two nuclear-armed neighbors.
“The meal started with the Mezze Platter. There was Yousaf Labneh on the menu, and of course, butters were served with Sumac as a condiment,” Monga said.
“The Middle Eastern influence in our region is strong, and when you serve food in a restaurant or a five-star hotel, you will always find some Middle Eastern cuisine on the table,” he added.
Monga, who was born and raised in Karachi, became passionate about cooking and chose culinary school after A Levels.
He enrolled at Taylor’s University in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, in 2011 as part of a dual degree program. After gaining international experience, he returned to Pakistan in late 2016 for personal reasons.
“For Pakistan to succeed in the future, we need to develop a strong service-based economy that focuses on hospitality and the culinary arts,” he reflected, based on his experience of serving the SCO delegates.
He noted that by promoting chefs and expanding the hospitality industry, Pakistan could project its warm hospitality to the world and cultivate a softer image.
Monga also shared his desire to set up a small culinary school in the mountains, where he could forage ingredients, ferment them, and develop flavor catalogs.
“I hope to develop a school there where I can teach students who are interested in learning,” Monga said. “They can come and collaborate with me, and together we can shape the future of Pakistani cuisine and its culinary landscape.”
