LAHORE - Kissan Ittehad Pakistan President Khalid Mahmood Khokhar has demanded the government to impose heavy duty on import of milk powder and whey powder in the country. The unchecked import of theses powders is badly hurting the interest of dairy farmers whose milk is neither being purchased by commercial buyers nor are they able to fetch reasonable price for their output.
Livestock has 55pc share in country’s agriculture production and we should not forget the fact that we are an agriculture economy. If agriculture is ignored and left on the mercy of foreign exporters, country’s rural economy would be devastated and millions of farmers whose livelihood is entirely dependent on agriculture and livestock would starve to death. He said that millions of smallholder farmers, many of whom are landless, are in the livestock rearing process and the revenue from milk is the sole income source for these millions of farmers.
Milking animals are an integral part of rural economy in the country and farmers who have 2 to 10 animals are in millions. These dairy farmers are unable to sell their milk as middlemen and buyers have started fabricating milk through skimmed milk powder and whey powder. Consumers are also being cheated by these fraudulent elements as consumers believe they are buying fresh milk but they are being sold with fabricated milk. He informed that average farm gate price a dairy farmer gets is Rs. 40 per liter whereas consumers are buying milk for over Rs. 100 per liter. He said that situation is worst in South Punjab where dairy farmers are hardly getting Rs. 32 per liter.
He informed that Pakistan has lowest import duty on milk powder and whey powder in the region which is just 20pc for SAARC countries and 25pc for rest of the world. He informed that India imposed 68pc duty on dry milk import whereas Turkey imposed 180pc duty on dry milk import in its territory just to protect their dairy farmers and to become self sufficient in milk production.
Government would have to take sensible and urgent measure to protect the dairy farming sector. We should strive for self sufficiency in milk production instead of becoming a dumping ground for foreign exporters around the world. Commercial buyers of milk should also have a patriotic stance on this issue as their practice of preferring imported milk powder over locally produced fresh milk is badly hurting millions of Pakistani Dairy farmers.
Citing Indian example he said that Indian farmers get numbers of incentives and subsidy by their government whereas in Pakistan farmers are facing high input costs and are deprived of right price for their milk. He urged that if Govt of Pakistan cannot provide incentives to the Pakistani farmers just like Indian Government do, it should at least provide a level playing field for Pakistani farmers. He appreciated the Government especially Minister for Food Security and Research Sikandar Hayat Bosan for listening to the issues of farmers and taking this matter at high levels, being the custodian of farmers as he has been mandated for food security in the country.
He alleged that Pakistan Dairy Association has been trying to influence the policy makers with their twisted facts as an effort to divert the Govt’s attention from the real issues. He reiterated that farmer will not allow any such pressure group to sabotage the the farmer friendly policies as they simply focus on burdening the farmers always. He informed that Punjab Govt sent a delegation to Turkey for studying the revolutionizing of Turkish dairy sector. Upon return, Pakistan Dairy Association made a recommendation presentation to Punjab Govt in which they mentioned everything except that Turkish Govt imposed 180pc duty on the import of milk powders. This intentional selection of the facts clearly shows that PDA is no more willing to favour the farming community but is now looking for their own vested interests and to crush the farmers and consumers on both sides.
He said that PDA recently wrote a letter to Ministry of Food Security and Research in which it has accepted that that they do not pack the fresh milk instead use powder and other ingredients to manufacture the products. He said that out of total UHT market hardly 42pc is packed as milk while 58pc is other than milk products including dairy liquids and tea whiteners, these products are made entirely from imported dry milk.