ISLAMABAD (December 30 2009): Pakistan Agri Forum (PAF) has urged the government to increase overall agriculture production targets by 10 to 15 percent for the up coming season. Talking to Business Recorder, Chairman PAF Ibrahim Mughal asked the government to increase support price of wheat and intervention prices of other agriculture products, because inputs costs have increased manifold.

During the current year Pakistan witnessed negative agriculture growth, as poor marketing and heavy post harvesting losses resulted in wasting of nearly 40 percent of crop outputs. He said that the government had done nothing for the farmers and they were being forced to sell their products to middlemen and brokers at nominal rates. He added that during the current year Pakistan`s per acre crop production particularly of major crops including wheat, rice, cotton, maize, different pulses and sunflower declined.

The PAF suggested the government to make efforts to enhance the per acre agriculture production of the country, saying that Pakistan has the capacity to increase per acre output by 25 percent. Suggesting the government to set higher production targets for the major crops, Mughal said that Pakistan in 2009 produced about 24 million tons of wheat and for the upcoming year it could easily produce 27 million tons, adding that to achieve this higher output figure requires sincere efforts on the part of the government as well as other concerned quarters.

Mughal stated that the global grain production would remain low next year due to multiple reasons and Pakistan has the best chance to produce more grain and resultantly earn huge foreign exchange by exporting the surplus produce. He said that although the government had set wheat production target at 25 million tons for next year, yet 27 million tons was achievable if sincere and all out efforts were made by the government and the farmers.

He said that the growers had also urged the government to review the wheat support price and per 40 kg wheat support price should be Rs 1,000 for next crop instead of Rs 950. He said that cotton was a cash crop for Pakistan and the government should increase cotton production target to 16 million bales and increase per 40 kg cotton price to Rs 2,000. Mughal stated the government should increase paddy production target to 8 million tons and intervention price for per 40 kg Basmati paddy should be Rs 1,500, while for non Basmati paddy it should be Rs 1,000 for upcoming season.

The gram production target should be set at 1.2 million tons for next year with intervention price of Rs 1,200 per 40 kg, rape and mustard production target should be increased to 2 million tons and its price should be fixed at Rs 2,000 per 40 kg.

He added that the sunflower production target should be fixed at three million tons for next year and its support price should be Rs 2,000 per 40 kg. Talking about sugarcane production target, he said that the government should increase it to 60 million tons with Rs 150 per 40 kg price.

Stressing the need to enhance local vegetable production, Mughal said that potato production target should be three million tons with Rs 10 per kg support price, onion production target be 2.5 million tons with support price of Rs 20 per kg and tomato production target one million tons with Rs 20 per kg support price.