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Pakistan to revive grading of agricultural products

ISLAMABAD — Pakistan government has decided to revive the grading system of agricultural and livestock products to enhance Pakistan's credibility as an exporter of good quality produce and meet requirements of the World Trade Organisation (WTO).

Informed sources said that the grading to agricultural products had been held in abeyance under a cabinet decision as part of Trade Policy 2000. The cabinet had directed to redesign the existing system under the Agricultural Produce (Grading and Marketing) Act.

However, the recommendations finalised by a special cabinet committee were not fully reflected in the Trade Policy 2004-05 and 2005-06. The ministries of commerce, food, agriculture and export promotion bureau have been discussing the revival of standards and grading system of agricultural products for the last two years and are hoping to restore it in the next year's trade policy, these sources said.

The grades and standards of quality of agricultural produce would be provided to commercial attaches in Pakistan embassies abroad for wide coverage.

These would also be provided to various agricultural inspection agencies and importers of agricultural produce so that they could enter in contracts for supply of goods on basis of these standards.

So far, compulsory grading and quality control of 41 items of both agriculture and livestock has been enforced before export.

These products include chillies, fish, citrus fruits, fish meal, lime and lemon, animal hair and bones.