The Pakistan Horticulture Development and Export Board (PHDEB) has urged the Punjab government to take immediate steps for resolving the issue of "rind blemish" in kinnow (citrus) to avoid any harm to its exports.
PHDEB Chief Executive Shamoon Sadiq told Business Recorder on Monday that they had discussed the problem of blemish in kinnows (citrus) with the Punjab Agriculture Department officials, and urged them to use the network of farmers' field schools established by the department to educate citrus farmers to remove this problem.
He said the department could use over 700 FFS network on studying how the pest was causing this disease, how it transferred the disease, where from it came and how to resolve this problem at the earliest avoiding any harm to exports of this fruit.
He said last year this disease was seen in 70 percent production of various regions, but as the importing countries were enhancing their checks and making their conditions strict, Pakistan had to act fast to remove this disease.
He claimed that the orange research centre was told to look into the matter, but no result came even after six months. He said they had told the Punjab Agriculture Department that this problem could be resolved through integrated pest-management (IPM) practices.
He said last year Pakistan exported 190,000 tonnes of Kinnows and if the crop proved good this year and luck supported, they were planning to export 250,000 tonnes of kinnows this year.
He said he hoped the recent rains would help tackle the issue of rind blemish, but Pakistan had to adopt a permanent and proper mechanism for imparting proper education to the farmers to tackle the disease and produce a healthy and good crop meeting the exporting criteria. He said a schedule should be devised for removing this problem as when, how and in what quantity pesticides should be applied.
He said there was a need to educate farmers to cater to the needs of local consumption too. He said farmers had to check minimum residual level and there should be testing laboratories and proper education for farmers to tackle the critical issue of export.