KARACHI: Pakistan on Saturday announced new policy measures to boost citrus exports, with a particular focus on kinnow mandarins, aiming to capture more overseas markets and strengthen its fragile economy through export-led growth.
The Ministry of National Food Security and Research said the initiative reflects the government’s continued drive to seek regional markets as it pivots toward exports to stabilize an economy that only two years ago narrowly averted a sovereign debt default.
The plan includes easing export procedures, expanding testing facilities and introducing disease-resistant, seedless kinnow varieties to lift yields and meet international standards.
“Citrus, particularly kinnow, is a symbol of Pakistan’s agricultural strength,” Federal Minister for Food Security Rana Tanveer Hussain said in a statement.
“By facilitating our farmers and exporters, introducing improved varieties, and opening new markets, the government is determined to make Pakistani citrus a globally recognized brand,” he added.
Hussain said the Department of Plant Protection has simplified pesticide residue testing and begun registering new exporters for Uzbekistan and other Central Asian states, while also opening a temporary outpost in Sargodha, the country’s main citrus-growing region, to speed up shipments.
He cited recent talks with a Russian delegation and new laboratory accreditations as steps to diversify destinations by also targeting markets in Russia, the Middle East, Africa and the European Union.
Pakistan exported 105,690 metric tons of citrus worth US$30.9 million in the first half of the last fiscal year (July-December 2024).
Citrus, led by kinnow, remains one of the country’s key horticultural exports, though the sector has faced challenges from ageing orchards, disease and climate pressures.
