KARACHI: Pakistan has set a modest export goal of 250,000 tonnes of kinno for the current fiscal year, which represents a notable decrease of 50,000 tonnes from the previous year.
Waheed Ahmed, Patron-in-Chief of the All Pakistan Fruit and Vegetable Exporters Association (PFVA), claims that the consequences of climate change are having an alarming impact on fruit output and quality.
Citrus exports have decreased by half to 250,000 tonnes over the past five years as a result of fog and haze.
While production is predicted to be 35 percent lower than previous year, the Kinno season is also delayed due to the extended heat and late arrival of winter weather.
Since the nation’s kinno variety is 60 years old, it is unable to withstand the impacts of weather and disease, while no variety lasts more than 25 years.
The PFVA has been encouraging the federal and provincial governments to support research and development and plant new types in different places for the past ten years, but he added that this component has received no attention up to this point, which has resulted in a severe fall in citrus exports.
Because of the intense heat that affected the kinno’s sweetness, moisture content, and quality, the harvesting was postponed by 15 days. This would ultimately damage both the local and export markets. Additionally, the price will be 10% more than it was during the previous season.
Since half of the 250 kinno processing factories have already closed due to significant financial losses, affecting 300,000 jobs and the Rs 300 billion investment in this industry, Mr. Waheed stated that if three or four new varieties are not developed, kinno exports will cease within the next three years.
