LAHORE: Pakistan and China can collaborate to initiate fruit quality enhancement centers, fruit processing units, dehydration plants and cold storage chains to make Pakistani fruits in line with the international standards for export to world markets.
Head of a 4-member Chinese delegation from Yantai Jiarong Trading Co. Limited, Huang Xin Jian stated this in a meeting with Pak-China Joint Chamber of Commerce and Industry (PCJCCI) Shah Faisal Afridi and members here on Tuesday.
Visiting Pakistan on special invitation by the PCJCCI, Huang Xin Jian appreciated endeavors and ideas of Afridi for development of fruit sector of Pakistan.
He said, “Fruit sector of Pakistan has enormous potential that can be beneficial for both the countries.”
He suggested formation of a preliminary research team to put ideas into practice, adding that his delegation had visited Pakistan with a focus to import fresh, processed and dry fruit from Pakistan, which would be re-exported to rest of the world after value addition.
While, Afridi said that Pakistan produced a wide variety of fruit and vegetables with total annual production estimated at 9 million metric tons, which included citrus 989,000 metric tons, mangoes 438,000 metric tons, apples 525,000 metric tons, guavas 126,000 metric tons, apricots and other fruit- bananas, grapes, pomegranates, pears and dates 1.914 million tons.
He pointed out that unfortunately, due to lack of advanced processing and packaging techniques, nearly 50 percent of total fruit production was lost during harvesting, transportation, preservation and storage.
He said, there was a dire need to focus on this industry and to upgrade it by boosting both fresh fruit packaging, grading and processing for value addition and to approach markets for export of fresh fruit and value-added products.
He mentioned that major operational activities in this process, which needed attention, were sorting, washing, waxing, drying, grading and packing.
It would be a great initiative if China established fruit processing and value addition plants in Pakistan, it would be beneficial to both countries, he added.
Highlighting the prospects of joint ventures in mango cultivation, Afridi viewed that with a total area of 167.5 thousand hectares under mango cultivation in Multan was producing 1,732 thousand tones mangoes making it the second major fruit crop of Pakistan after citrus and is ranked fourth in the world for its mango production.
The PCJCCI facilitated the delegation by arranging one to one meetings with effective and experienced investors, businessmen and dignitaries related to fruit industry.
During their stay, the delegation also visited various organizations from the public and private sector, including PBIT, National Productivity organization and Multan Chamber of Commerce and Industry to get more informed about the issues concerning fruit industry.
