Pakistan Agribusiness Investments in Dairy & Livestock

US venture investor Tim Draper, Swiss food giant Nestle, and American beverage titan Coca Cola are investing heavily in Pakistan's agribusiness.

Silicon Valley private equity investor Tim Draper, a well-known international venture capitalist, is quietly investing in Pakistan's agribusiness, the largest provider of food commodities in the Middle East, according to San Francisco Examiner.

The share of livestock in Pakistan's agriculture output nearly doubled from 25.3 percent in 1996 to 49.6 percent in 2006, according to FAO. As part of the continuing livestock revolution, Nestle is investing $334 million to double its dairy output in Pakistan, according to Businessweek. Reuters is reporting that the company has already installed 3,200 industrial-size milk refrigerators
at collection points across the country to start the
kind of cold storage chain essential for a modern dairy industry, and
give farmers a steady market for their milk. In another development on the infrastructure front, Express Tribune has reported that  Pakistan Horti Fresh Processing (Pvt)
Limited has invested in the world's largest hot treatment plant to process 15 tons of mangoes per hour for exports.  Hot water treatment  will also help reduce waste of fruits and vegetables by increasing shelf-life for domestic consumption.
 



The Coca-Cola Company is planning to invest another US$280 million by 2013 in
Pakistan, according to BMI's Q3 2012 Food & Beverage Report for Pakistan.  Coke plans to channel the bulk of its
capital expenditures towards increasing the production of its existing
brands as well as expanding its overall beverages portfolio. Coca-Cola
plans to introduce more juices and mineral water in the Pakistani market
over the coming years. This strategy could diversify Coca- Cola’s
presence beyond the carbonates sector and help it secure early footholds
in the higher-value bottled water and fruit juice segments, which boast
tremendous long-term promise.



In addition to foreign investors, big name Pakistani companies like Dawood Group's Engro, billionaire industrialist Mian Mansha's Nishat Group and former minister Jahangir Khan Tareen's JK Dairies are placing big bets on food and beverage market in the country. Annual milk consumption in Pakistan reached 230 kg per capita in 2005, more than twice India's per capita consumption, according to FAO.

Business Monitor International expects "Pakistani agriculture sector to reap record harvests for key crops
such as rice, sugar and cotton owing to favorable weather in 2011 and the year-on-year increase in
crop area following floods in 2010". "We expect the dairy, poultry and
wheat industries to be the biggest beneficiaries of increased investment in the agriculture sector", adds BMI's report.

 Pakistan is world’s eighth
largest consumer of food and food is
the second biggest industry in the country, providing 16 per cent
employment in production, according to report published in Express Tribune In addition to rising domestic demand, growth in agribusiness is supplemented by
increased exports as Pakistan expands trade with new partners. BMI expects basmati rice to take
up a greater share of the trade as production increases. Cotton production to 2015/16: 45.5% to 12.8 million bales. Increased demand from Europe and
emerging markets will drive output. BMI also expect an increase in domestic farmers switching
from rice and sugar to cotton cultivation. Sugar production to 2015/16: 22.1% to 4.8 million tons. Large-scale consumers such as
confectioners, candy makers and soft drink manufacturers account for about 60% of the total
sugar demand and will be the main drivers of growth.

Pakistan witnessed a livestock revolution follow Green Revolution. Here's how International Livestock Research Institute puts the dramatic changes in Pakistan's agriculture sector since the mid 1960s: 

 Since the mid 1960s, investment in Green Revolution technologies – high-yielding varieties of cereals, chemical fertilizers, pesticides, irrigation and mechanization of farm operations – significantly increased cereal crop productivity and output. Success in the crop sector created a platform for diversification of farm and non-farm activities in the rural areas including the livestock sector, especially the dairy sector. Some of the Green Revolution technologies had a direct impact on the dairy sector while others had an indirect impact. Increased cereal productivity and output helped to reduce prices of cereals relative to other commodities in both rural and urban areas. This, along with increased income from high crop-sector growth, created  demand for better-quality foods including livestock products. This created market opportunities and incentives for crop producers to diversify into higher-value products, such as milk, meat, vegetables and fruits.

Pakistan has made significant progress in agriculture and livestock sectors showing that it has the potential to feed its people well and produce huge surpluses to fuel exports boom. The continuation of this progress will depend largely on success in making needed public and private investments in energy and water infrastructure and education and health care.

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Comment by Riaz Haq on December 31, 2012 at 10:58pm

Here's Olive Oil Times report on olive cultivation in Pakistan:

Pakistan has announced plans to boost olive cultivation with a plantation of four million olive saplings in the northwest tribal province of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. Provincial Minister for Agriculture Arbab Ayub Jan said that the goal is to make the region self-sufficient in olive oil.

The government of Pakistan has already launched a Rs. 500 million mechanized farming program to usher in a revolution in the country’s agriculture. Minister Ayub Jan, while speaking to a group of farmers in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, said that a major distribution plan is underway to ensure that the olive saplings get distributed to various areas of the province that are well-suited for the cultivation of olives.

The government is devising a multi-pronged strategy to achieve its long-term goal of self-sufficiency. Well-distributed olive cultivation across the province would help achieve maximum produce in the shortest timeframe. At the same time, the government is looking at other key areas to boost olive production.

The minister said that the government is investing in the establishment of new cold storages and installation of plants to grade and polish fruits. Such improvements in agricultural infrastructure would support the government’s targets of achieving superior produce, low wastage and self-sufficiency in critical food products such as olive oil. The minister pointed out that two new cold storages at a cost of Rs. 360 million had already been established with financial assistance from Italy.

http://www.oliveoiltimes.com/olive-oil-basics/pakistan-plant-4-mill...

Comment by Riaz Haq on January 12, 2013 at 7:34pm

Here's an ET story on Pepsi sales in Pakistan:

Pakistan is one of the top 10 markets outside the United States for PepsiCo, says Qasim Khan, a senior executive in the global food and beverage giant’s management team for Asia.

---------
Somewhat surprisingly for PepsiCo, its biggest brand in Pakistan is not the signature Pepsi cola, but rather Mountain Dew. “Pakistan is the second-largest market in the world for Mountain Dew after the United States,” said Muhammad Khosa, head of corporate affairs at PepsiCo Pakistan.

Pepsi began its operations in Pakistan with carbonated beverages in 1967, and currently has eight bottling franchisees operating throughout the country. In addition to Pepsi and Mountain Dew, they produce 7up and Mirinda in the carbonated beverage category, and Sting in the energy drink segment. Over the past decade, Pepsi has added snack foods and fruit juices to its portfolio of products in Pakistan, which it manufactures primarily out of a factory in Lahore.

The addition of the snack food business – as well as strong growth in its beverage lines – has resulted in PepsiCo becoming the largest food and beverage company in Pakistan. According to sources familiar with the matter, the revenues of PepsiCo Pakistan and its eight bottlers came to a combined Rs82 billion for the financial year ending June 30, 2012, up 19% compared to the previous year.

Growth seems to be moving at breakneck speed in the snack food business, which the company started in 2006. “The Pakistan snack food business was the fastest growing in the Asia Pacific region for PepsiCo last year,” said Khan.

Indeed, growth was so fast that the company’s manufacturing plant for snacks reached its peak production capacity within its first year of operations. The company had initially estimated that it would be able to handle at least three years’ growth: it is now scrambling to add capacity as quickly as possible.

Pakistan’s growing importance for PepsiCo is increasingly being reflected in different ways. A television commercial produced in Pakistan for Mountain Dew is now used worldwide. Pakistani technical staff members are occasionally sent to PepsiCo’s divisions around the world to train others. And the PepsiCo food laboratory in Lahore is now used as one of the main labs for products being tested for the Middle East and Africa.

The company’s business unit, under which Pakistan falls, is headed by Qasim Khan, a 1979 graduate of Hailey College in Lahore. After a brief stint at Procter & Gamble, Khan joined PepsiCo in 1986 and has been with the company ever since; serving in senior positions throughout the world.
----------
PepsiCo and its bottlers combined have over 15,000 employees in Pakistan. And it is among the highest taxpaying entities in the country.

Yet not everything is going well for PepsiCo in Pakistan. The natural gas shortage has meant that gas supply to its captive power generation unit at its manufacturing facility has been cut off, forcing it towards alternative, and more expensive, fuel sources. “The cost savings we had managed in our logistics operations were wiped out by higher energy costs,” said Khan.

Nonetheless, the company plans to continue growing its operations in Pakistan and make it part of the global supply chain. Kurkure, spicy corn-based snack currently available only in India and Pakistan, will soon be exported to Malaysia, Indonesia and Singapore from Pakistan, owing to the fact that the chips produced in Pakistan are already certified ‘halal’.

http://tribune.com.pk/story/493197/food-and-beverages-pakistan-amon...

Comment by Riaz Haq on January 14, 2013 at 8:34pm

Here's an ET story on cutting out middlemen in Pak agriculture value chain:

KARACHI:

In the food business, there is one strategy that works better than most others: disintermediation, or in layman’s terms, cutting out the middleman.

That is exactly the strategy being pursued by one of the world’s largest privately-held food companies, which is in the process of entering into an agreement to buy its supply of rice directly from Pakistani corporatised farms, cutting out the dozens of layers of commodity traders in between, increasing profits for both the Pakistani farmer and the foreign retailer.

The food company, one of the most significant players in the North American and European markets, has decided that it will source up to 30% of its basmati rice requirements from Pakistan through a company called Rice Partners, a corporate farming outfit being financed by Indus Holdings, an Islamabad-based venture capital and private equity firm.

With all the brouhaha about companies and governments from richer countries coming into poorer nations and buying up agricultural land, the arrangement being pursued by Rice Partners is a decidedly interesting one: the company will not own the farms, but instead will have contracts with farmers for both quality and quantity of produce that it will buy.

Rice Partners has selected about 27 farmers small and medium sized farms that collectively spread over 2,500 acres in and around Muridke in Punjab, in collaboration with their foreign partner. (Rice Partners has asked The Express Tribune not to disclose the name of their partner, since it is not a publicly listed company.)

The company will provide equipment to the farmers, assist them in improving their growing techniques and improve their overall productivity. The rice grown will be expected to meet some of the most rigorous regulatory standards and its quality will be audited by URS Pakistan, a leading quality certification and assurance company.

As a result of the higher quality and strict audits, the farmers will be paid a premium over market rates.

The difference in farm-gate prices (what the farmer gets) and retail prices (what the end user pays), are some of the highest in rice, with the retail price often being four to five times higher than the farm-gate price. Since Rice Partners will be selling directly to a retail brand, instead of going through the 10 to 12 intermediaries, it can afford to pay a much higher price while still remaining competitive.

For its part, the foreign food giant gets an assurance of quality that reduces its rejection rates which, company executives say, can reach as high as 50% in India. Rice Partners will be placing radio-frequency identification (RFID) tags in every bag of rice produced, which will offer its foreign partner an unmatched level of traceability – the ability to know precisely where the rice was grown in case there is ever a problem.

The first shipments of rice under the project are expected to be dispatched in early 2012.

While Pakistan is only the 11th largest producer of rice, according to the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organisation, it is the world’s fourth largest exporter, since rice is not a staple part of the Pakistani diet. Yet most of the exports are commodity based, rather than value-added.

...

http://tribune.com.pk/story/281091/cutting-out-the-middleman-global...

Comment by Riaz Haq on January 14, 2013 at 8:43pm

Here's a Nation newspaper report on PASSCO ending middle men in wheat procurement:

ISLAMABAD - The Pakistan Agriculture Storage and Supply Corporation (PASSCO) is working on a plan to end the role of middle-man to purchase wheat in bulk rather than bardana.According to sources the move will go a long way to help reduce the rising trend of corruption in wheat procurement process and will help to discourage the role of middle-man in wheat purchase operation. It has also plan to register farmers and issue PASSCO cards during wheat sale operation and under the proposed plan wheat can only be procured in bulk without bardana in order to curtail the role of middle-man.It proposed by PASSCO to minimize the subsidy burden on the government of Pakistan and also to minimize the carrying cost wheat procurement targets allocated to PASSCO should be need driven and wheat procurement target to be given keeping in view the average requirement of dependent provinces .Armed forces plus strategic and any unforeseen factors."A payment mechanism be developed wherein the cost of wheat dispatched to Gilgit-Baltistan and Government of Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK) are directly paid at source in advance to PASSCO by the Federal government which, will save the national exchequer heavy mark-up which keeps accumulating due to present payment mechanism," sources said."PASSCO requires minimum storage capacity of 1.5 million tons because its godowns has the capacity of only 0.431 million (28 per cent) tons and the remaining 72 per cent wheat stocks were stored in open under tarpaulins," official date reveals." the situation is precarious at 2.039 million tons wheat stocks are lying in the open in far-flung areas (as on 24.09.2012) which has more susceptible to climatic hazards and pest attack,".It said there was a dire need to create additional storage facilities for PASSC and in this regard proposal and offer of Islamic Development Bank for construction of silos with capacity of .65 million tons need to be persuade at war footing on government level.It is quite relevant to mention here that PASSCO has to pay Rs12 billion mark-up on Rs93.54 billion of loans taken from commercial banks in current financial year 2011-12 to run its operations whereas it has to recover Rs19.7 billion dues from regional and provincial governments and other organisations, including the Pakistan Army, on account of wheat supply. In addition to these, PASSCO was to receive Rs3.8 billion on account of mark-up and financial charges from different agencies.

http://www.nation.com.pk/pakistan-news-newspaper-daily-english-onli...

Comment by Riaz Haq on January 15, 2013 at 10:48am

Here's a Nation report on Nestle training Pak dairy farmers:

LAHORE – The Nestlé Pakistan has planned to train 30,000 dairy farmers in next five years through its training centers established at Nestle Farmhouses with a view to improve milk quality as well as production.

This was observed by Nestle Pakistan Manager Corporate Media Relations & Policy Networking Saira Iftikhar, Regional Milk Collection Manager Syed Naveedul Hassan and Assistant Training Manager Salman Umer while briefing The Nation during a visit to Okara Nestle Farmhouse.

“The farmhouse training centers, including training centre of district Okara, are imparting training to around 2,000 dairy farmers annually, besides educating around 4,500 lady dairy farmers so far,” they observed.

Saira observed that Okara training project, started in July 2007, is providing technical assistance and advice about animal health, breeding and fodder production to female dairy farmers also in Punjab as well as half of Sindh to raise the quality and value of the milk they supply, which in turn boosts the local economy.

She maintained that Nestlé Pakistan has taken a key role in the country’s dairy development and is keen to bring new knowledge into the sector, both to build a better future for farmers and to improve the rural economy.

Regional Milk Collection Manager Syed Naveedul Hassan informed that the training is aimed at helping both small scale producers and large commercial farms to improve milk quality and increase milk production in a country which is seeing a growing demand for milk products.

Naveed explained: “We believe that Pakistan will grow very fast as a milk supplier and it has great potential for development into a leading milk exporter.”

“We hope that, through training, we can help our farmers to turn their herds into profit making ventures by improving farm management, efficiency and dairy animal welfare.

“As well as bringing in a valuable source of income, an increase in quality milk production will also provide a source of employment within communities and a significant boost to the economy, he elaborated. He added that it will also help to uplift the socio economic status of the rural workforce.

Assistant Training Manager of Milk Collection & Dairy Development Salman Umer expressed that the course was designed specifically to cover farm management, milk production, cattle health, nutrition and breeding.

The training is providing an excellent opportunity for farmers to learn from the mature international dairy sector, he said and added that Pakistan has the potential to double its milk production if just a few international good practices can be adopted into local conditions.

“Although the vast majority of our farms are small enterprises, the overall volume of milk produced makes Pakistan the fourth largest producer in the world. Just a 10 per cent rise in yield would make a significant difference, he added.” The participants of training said: “The training offered through Nestle Sarsabz Farm has been very effective in helping us towards this goal. The training programme has been making a strong impact on milk production.”

“This has been a very good experience which has exceeded expectations, stated farmers who were getting training. They added that there is a very keen and supportive culture at Nestle Training Centre which allows us to share experience and knowledge.

“We have seen many things which we can use as a benchmark to help us make improvements in our dairy farm. We have been delighted at the success of this very exciting and worthwhile programme with Nestlé Pakistan.

http://www.nation.com.pk/pakistan-news-newspaper-daily-english-onli...

Comment by Riaz Haq on January 22, 2013 at 10:22pm

Here's Daily Times on Pak food exports:

ISLAMABAD - The food exports of the country during first half of financial year 2012-13 increased by 4.82 percent as compared to same period of last year. The exports of overall food group were recorded at $2,054 million during July-December (2012-13) against the exports of $ 1,959 million during July-December (2011-12).
According to data of Pakistan Bureau of Statistics (PBS), the food exports from the country on month on month basis also increased by 14.34 percent and 18.01 percent during December 2012 when compared with December 2011 and November 2012 respectively.
The food exports increased from $ 384.493 million in December 2011 and $ 374.465 million in November 2012 to $ 441.923 million in December 2012.
The major food items which recorded increase in their exports during the first six months of current financial year over same period of last year include sugar (100%), meat and meat preparations (43.74%), fish and fish preparations (2.64%), vegetables (38.28%), spices (25.07%), oil seeds, nuts and kernels (41.6%%) and all other food items (17.31%).
Similarly the food items which recorded decrease in their exports include rice (12.33%), fruits (1.77%), pulses (56.68%), tobacco (40.91%) and wheat (61.49%). The overall exports from the country witnessed growth of 7.58 percent during the period July-December (2012-13) as compared to same period of last year.
Exports from the country during July-December (2012-13) were recorded at $ 12.0513 billion against the exports of $ 11.201 billion during the same period of last year.

http://www.pakistantoday.com.pk/2013/01/23/news/profit/food-exports...

Comment by Riaz Haq on February 6, 2013 at 4:52pm

Here's a BR story on Tetrapak growth in Pakistan:

Tetra Pak sees tremendous potential for growth in Pakistan as its liquid packaged food industry (dairy and beverage) will grow on an average compound annual growth rate of 15 to 16 percent over the next five years. Pakistan is the 6th largest market in terms of population and for the past several years has consistently registered one of the highest growth rates globally.

Tetra Pak factory will meet the rapidly growing demands of Pakistan's dairy and beverage industries as well as growing demand from other emerging markets in the cluster 'greater middle east', said Tetra Pak factory Production Manager Ihsan Ullah Khan while talking to members of the Agricultural Journalists Association (AJA) at factory premises on Wednesday.

He said that the factory which was constructed with an investment of over Rs 10 billion started its operations on December 01, 2010 has been declared 'Factory of the Year Award' in recognition of its achievement in operational efficiency, environment and safety performance within two years since it commenced operation. The factory has production capacity of eight billion packages per year, with the potential to double production to 16 billion packages.

He said hard work and dedication of local people have proved Tetra Pak administration right in their taking decision of investment in Pakistan. By pursuing continuous improvement in operation, our factory has outperformed previous benchmarks in world class performance and productivity. "I am pleased to be a part of the winning team and I believe, passion of our people and mental fortitude is the driving force behind our success in such a short span of time," remarks Tahir Hafeez, Factory Director.

The selection process for the Factory of the Year Award is based on a selection of key performance indicators, employee satisfaction and management voting. The Lahore factory is World Class Manufacturing (WCM) certified, following manufacturing best practices, for leaner production such as limiting waste level to a minimum, reducing energy consumption by almost 20 percent from 2011. The factory has successfully established a working environment that aims at zero accidents.

http://www.brecorder.com/agriculture-a-allied/183/1151541/

Comment by Riaz Haq on March 5, 2013 at 10:31am

Here's ET on Coke's planned investment in Pakistan:

KARACHI: Optimistic about its growth prospects in Pakistan, the Coca-Cola Company – one of the world’s largest beverage companies – will invest $379 million on manufacturing facilities across Pakistan over the next three years to expand its business, the company’s Pakistani subsidiary announced on Monday.

The announcement comes on top of the $172 million already invested by Coca-Cola in the country in 2011. The beverage giant will be spending the money on three new bottling plants, one each in Karachi, Multan and Islamabad. The announcement was made in the ground-breaking ceremony of the Multan plant on Monday.

The funds will be utilised for expansion and bringing about infrastructure changes and systemic improvements in the Coca-Cola system, an official press release said.

The expansion plans come as rising demand makes it difficult for Coca-Cola to keep pace with its existing production capacity in Karachi and Punjab, according to company officials. A decent growth in its top-line may also be another factor encouraging more investments.

Owing to its strategic location, Multan can not only serve southern and northern Punjab – which alone accounts for more than 60% of Coca-Cola’s business – but can also cater to Karachi’s market, company spokesman Fahad Qadir told The Express Tribune.

Greenfield investment refers to new foreign direct investment that will be utilised in setting up a completely new project, as opposed to an existing business expanding operations with its free cash flows.

Qadir says the plant will be fully equipped with state-of-the-art production equipment and product warehousing facilities. The plant will also have a much higher manufacturing capacity, he said.

Besides the three Greenfield plants announced, Coca-Cola Pakistan already operates six bottling factories in Pakistan, located in Karachi, Gujranwala, Multan, Lahore, Rahimyar Khan, and Faisalabad. It buys close to Rs13 billion in raw materials from around 300 local suppliers.

The Coca-Cola System, according to the press release, provides direct and indirect employment to more than 8,000 people in Pakistan; while another 35,000 people are employed through its supply chain, and another 100,000 benefit through employment in allied industries.

Coco-Cola Pakistan refused to comment on its revenues: but our sources say the company earned over Rs50 billion in revenues for the financial year ending June 30, 2012; a 55% increase when compared with the previous year. It also paid Rs10 billion in taxes.

http://tribune.com.pk/story/515776/coca-cola-announces-379m-expansi...

Comment by Riaz Haq on March 6, 2013 at 9:55am

Here's a Nation newspaper article on food marketing in Pakistan:

FOOD marketing is such a process that usually brings together the producer and consumer. The marketing of even a single food product can be a convoluted process involving many producers and companies. For example, Pakistan has seen a fabulous growth in frozen foods market by the development of the ice-cream segment. The frozen food ice cream segment’s market size enormously expanded as a result of two entrants: a multinational company and a large local company.
Product development is systematic, commercially sloping way to develop products and processes satisfying a known or alleged consumer need. There are four basic stages for every product development process: product strategy development, product design and development, product commercialisation and product launch or post-launch. The vital test of product development occurs in the market and a new product can only be considered flourishing if it is a market and financial success.
There are three historical phases of frozen food marketing: the transportation phase, the distribution phase and the capacity of the retailers.
Today foods are not anticipated to merely satisfy hunger and to endow with necessary nutrients for humans but also to prevent nutrition-related diseases and improve physical and mental well-being of the consumers. The increasing demand of such ‘functional foods’ can be explained by the increasing cost of healthcare, the sturdy increase in life expectancy and the desire of older people for enhanced quality of life in later years.
Product development is now indispensable to scrutinize the issue of what constitutes a new or innovative product. Newness of a product may be judged differently according to those who pick it.
To mull over food product sales it is essential to look at the retail sector; this sector is characterised by intense competition and the dominant position held by supermarkets in many regions of the Pakistan. There is competition not only for sales between retailers but competition between food product suppliers. Pakistan has about 200,000 stores in the urban markets. These account for 90pc of the trade.
The development of the frozen food industry impacts farmers. The farmer directly benefits as he gets a better price, whether he owns a cow/buffalo or grows wheat and grains used in poultry feeds, or produces fruits and vegetables.
Pakistan has abundant sources of raw material. It is the 4th prevalent producer of milk and is one of the top ten producers of poultry in the world. 40pc of the horticulture produce is exhausted in post-harvest losses.
The global market of frozen vegetables alone is more than $3 billion with Japan and USA as the biggest importers of frozen vegetables while Malaysia imported $23 million worth of frozen vegetables in 2004.

http://www.nation.com.pk/pakistan-news-newspaper-daily-english-onli...

Comment by Riaz Haq on March 11, 2013 at 10:01pm

Here's PakObserver on US help to improve Pak agri productivity:

Tuesday, March 12, 2013 - Islamabad—The U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), the International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center (CIMMYT), and the Pakistan Agricultural Research Council (PARC) launched a new project to expand the use of modern technologies in Pakistan’s agriculture sector.

“Boosting Pakistan’s economy is one of our top assistance priorities. That’s why this project will work to modernize agricultural practices to increase the production and quality of livestock and horticultural goods. This in turn will enhance economic development in the country,” said USAID Country Director Jonathan M. Conly at the launch of the project in Islamabad on March 8.

Innovative technologies, introduced in Pakistan with support from the U.S. Government, spurred the Green Revolution in the 1960s and 1970s. The adoption of improved rice and wheat varieties, combined with strategic policies and investments, led to a doubling of yields and output in those two decades. With investment in research, Pakistan transformed its agricultural sector into a driver for economic growth.

Currently, Pakistan’s agricultural sector is growing at a much slower pace than other sectors. “Pakistan’s agricultural productivity has fallen behind comparable countries with similar agro-ecologies,” said Thomas Lumpkin, Director General of CIMMYT. “There is a tremendous potential for growth, but we must act now.”

Through its new four-year, $30 million project, USAID will sponsor research to encourage adoption of new technologies in agriculture, such as laser land leveling, zero tillage, residue management, introducing short duration legumes into rice-wheat cropping systems, and custom service systems for machinery.

The project will also offer short and long-term training. The U.S.-funded project will be implemented by CIMMYT and PARC in cooperation with the International Livestock Research Institute, the World Vegetable Center, the International Rice Research Institute, and the University of California, Davis.

Promoting economic growth is one of the many ways that the United States is helping to create a brighter future for the people of Pakistan. The United States funds large-scale energy projects that will provide electricity to two million households by the end of 2013. The U.S. has rebuilt and renovated 800 schools and has provided scholarships to 12,000 students to attend universities in Pakistan.

http://pakobserver.net/detailnews.asp?id=199817

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