Pakistan pays a high price for food imports

Pakistan spends $7.5bn on food imports in july-may

The rising food import bill also triggered a trade deficit, which will now cause some worry on the external side for the government in upcoming months. Data compiled by Pakistan Bureau of Statistics (PBS) showed the share of food items in the total import bill reached 15.08pc this year, compared to 12pc last year, making the country dependent on imports to ensure food security.

The government projection of bumper crops of sugar, wheat and corns will reduce changes of any tangible imports.

as an example, The government has announced that wheat production will be around 27.23m tonnes this year. Pakistan imported 3.612 million tonnes of wheat worth $983.326m in nine months of this fiscal year compared to zero imports last year. In April and May, no wheat was imported as the government expects a bumper wheat crop this year.

The import bill of pulses, dried fruits, milk, and other food products witnessed a massive growth during the period under review

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