OKARA-The business of fresh potato crops amounts to 4 billion dollars, and that of the stored potato goes beyond 7 billion dollars. It was disclosed by former coordinator to the government on potato Dr Khalid Farooq while providing awareness regarding cultivation, growth and harvest of potato to the potato growers at the office of Pakistan Potato Growers Society here. He informed that the total yield of potato in Pakistan has risen to 4 million tonnes, regretting that despite bumper crop, Pakistan lacks enough processing facility for potatoes.
“There is a plant established by a private firm but it is short of potato supply,” he said, adding that if the government could facilitate, bulk of the potato yield could be shifted to this plant. He advised the potato growers to cultivate potato on demand of some needy firm or company at his choice. The seed of potato must have lesser water. He said that the SSP fertilizers could be prepared on farm-houses easily on a cheaper expenditure. The practice must be adopted by the potato growers like Indian farmers.
He advised the farmers to evolve their own potato seed and save the yield from sunlight and heat. The land PH (subsoil acidity) must be decreased. He said that in Gilgit-Baltistan, the potato harvesting season starts from July 15 to August 15. But the GB farmers do not need cold stores to preserve their yield on account of extreme cold. President Potato Growers Society Chaudhry Maqsood Ahmad Jatt, potato growers including Rao Humayun Mustafa, Rao Zameer Haidar, Chaudhry Khurshid Jilani, Chaudhry Khurram Jat and others attended the session.