20000414

Steps to ensure

quality for fruit

export suggested

MUZAFFAR QURESHI

KARACHI: The fruits and vegetable exporters have suggested that all exporters of citrus fruits be registered by the Citrus Fruit board in order to check quality of exports made by the new entrants.

The suggestion was made to the Small and Medium Enterprise Development Authority (Smeda) by the All Pakistan Fruits and Vegetable Importers and Exporters Association during a meeting held in Karachi. Smeda team was headed by Syed Dilawar Abbas while Mahmood Rabbani represented the association.

Mahmood Rabbani, Chairman, exports sub-committee of the association, told the Smeda team that the new entrants in exports especially of citrus fruits offered low quality fruits at low prices to the buyers which not only brought bad name to the country but also adversely affected business of the major exporters.

He suggested that only those exporters who had proper vexing, grading and cold storage facilities be allowed to export citrus fruits.

The association representative also suggested that fruit and vegetable exporters should be allowed to import duty-free refrigerated vans for transportation of agricultural produce from their farms in the interior to the ports and airports.

Exporters of fruits and vegetables require about 50 such vehicles for carrying out business.

Rabbani also told the Smeda team that the export of fruits and vegetable could be increased provided the Pakistan National Shipping Corporation (PNSC) arranged transportation of green stuff through these containers. The availability of these containers with the PNSC would not only help saving precious foreign exchange of the country which is at present swept by foreign shipping lines but will also break the foreign shipping lines monopoly on sea trade.

The Smeda delegation assured the fruit exporters that it would submit these suggestions to the government for a suitable action.