LAHORE, Jul 16 (APP):Being the fifth largest populated country with a population growth rate of around two per cent, Pakistan would be experiencing food security issues in coming decades as experts predict its populace to almost double within the next 30 years if continues to grow at its existing pace.
This situation needs serious consideration for enhancing agricultural produce by introducing modern techniques and bringing more land under cultivation besides ensuring proper storage of edibles and smooth supply to consumers at affordable rates.
A multi-pronged strategy based on short and long-term measures was direly needed to achieve food sufficiency goals with a prime focus on enhancing agricultural produce as well as grain procurement and their proper storage to avoid wastage.
Since wheat is a main staple food for our people with a per capita consumption of around 125kg annually, its cultivation on vast tracts of land with enhanced productivity and procurement had become imperative to feed the people at a bearable cost.
Wheat productivity has stagnated in recent years, with only a 10 per cent increase since the last decade. However, by achieving the 16.48 million acre wheat cultivation target in Punjab in 2022-23, the crop topped 27.5 million metric tons, the highest in the last 10 years.
Although increased yield is equally important, yet keeping in view the challenges of climatic changes, heavy rains and floods as happened last year, post-harvest management is more a resource-efficient way to improve food availability without additional agricultural inputs.
The wheat supply chain in the country is another important factor and can be safeguarded by an increase in average production as well as reducing post-harvest losses. Currently, the average yield of wheat is around three tonnes per hectare, substantially lower when compared to other countries.
“Wheat harvesting losses in our country are about 10-20pc because of an outdated mode of farming that cost us the loss of around two million tone wheat,” remarked Focal Person at the University of Agriculture, Faisalabad Irfan Afzan. “Combine wheat harvester is one of the factors and it is direly needed that Engineering Development Board provides registration and fitness certificates to these harvesters.”
Moreover, he noted that additional 10-15 per cent losses occur post-harvesting due to improper storage at granaries or storing crops in the open along with abstemious rainfall during monsoon season and subsequent flooding. “Therefore, around 50-60 per cent wheat is marketed as farmers hold the remaining for their own consumption.”
Irfan Afzan suggested, there is vast scope to reduce on-farm and off-farm losses through improved harvesting, bulk handling and storage in modern silos. “Construction and up gradation of storehouses are essential to minimize storage losses.”
He said elevated relative humidity, exacerbated by subsequent high temperatures during storage practices, is the primary catalyst for grain degradation, particularly in seeds.
According to experts wheat seed requires about 12 per cent moisture content and 65 per cent relative humidity for safe storage. The seed moisture content of greater than 14pc promotes mould attack resulting in aflatoxin contamination of stored products.
“Presence of aflatoxin in grain poses a major risk for humans, especially children, as it can have immunosuppressive, mutagenic and carcinogenic effects,” they believe.
Also arguing about measures to enhance yield, these experts recommend investment in research, use of efficient machinery for sowing, harvesting and threshing, use of certified seed and timely application of irrigation and balanced fertilizer.
“Sowing of recommended seed cultivars in a particular region is crucial because only that cultivar can produce optimum yield, keeping in view the elements of climate,” they pleaded.
Climatic shifts in Pakistani terrain have led agricultural think tanks to introduce cost-effective improved storage facilities in the form of hermetic bags and mini-hermetic drums, usually termed ‘Anaji drum’ developed by the University of Agriculture, Faisalabad (UAF).
One hermetic bag is sufficient to preserve the quality of 50kg wheat seed for one acre of land during seasonal storage. While the Anaji drum can store 3 to 4 maunds of wheat grains without fumigation and two drums are sufficient for five family members to utilize wheat grains for a year.
Hermetic storage prevents both moisture and oxygen as these enhanced storage technologies demonstrate cost-effectiveness and safeguard from climatic effects.
At harvest time, hermetic bags and drums were distributed among the farmers of flood-affected areas to preserve their seeds for the next growing season as this technology is already practiced in more than 80 countries.
This low-cost technology enables farmers to preserve seed and food commodities throughout the season without insect infestation.
According to Punjab Food Department, five types of storage are used for the preservation of wheat including house-type, steel silos, concrete silos, bins and open silos with the best among is steel silos which are used nowadays.
Now whatever be the claims of the government departments and the opinions of the experts, food security is a serious issue especially when we talk of post-harvest wastage of grains.
Therefore, the governments and allied departments must take it seriously by not only ensuring better inputs but also proper procurement and storage of crops to meet the daily needs of people and avert shortage of the most needed food grains.
