Date industry in doldrums

Published September 23, 2002

THE GOVERNMENT’s statistics being circulated on date production, exports and imports are not only contradictory but the confusion is such that the government feels proud of its performance, exporters feel they neither have markets abroad, nor enough quantity to export if demand comes up and the local population is forced to eat inferior quality dates imported from Iran— both officially and smuggled through known trade routes.

The government figures show that the average annual exports are about 45,000 - 50,000 tons or 8.63 per cent of our annual production claimed to be 580,000 tons, and over 90 per cent is for local use. But there again, we are told that our demand for dates is so great that we officially import on an average 23,000 tons of inferior quality or about four per cent of our total production from Iran, almost at the same CIF price at which we export. Yet, the government has claimed that we are a large exporter of dates.

Our production figures and area are doubtful by all standards of horticulture production. Table-I below shows yield and production from 1961 at 4 years interval and from 1992 annually.

The table shows that in the year 1993, a miracle happened, such as had not happened any where in the world with tree crops over thousands of years. Overnight our area under date trees jumped from 41,237 to 73,167 hectares an increase of 77.4 per cent.

Such a miracle was attempted in the past which had adverse consequences. In the early years of the Ayub’s rule, in the case of wheat,deputy commissioners sat on the backs of big land owners and forced them to put more area under the wheat crop. The helpless land owners followed the dictates in spite of the poor economy and high cost of production. Even them, Pakistan did not become self-sufficient in wheat for 28 years until 1981. There after, Pakistan did not become surplus in wheat until the end of the 20th century.

Coming back to the increase in the area and yield, the production of dates in the whole country increased from 257,157 to 576,573 tons, an increase of 109 per cent—coming up and down- and maintaining itself around 580,000 tons for the past ten years. Assuming that the trees were young, planted some years earlier and came in to their first commercial production at the age of 7 or 8 years in 1993, the production should have increased year after year as date trees yields keep increasing up to maturity or the age of 15-20 years. This did not happen. The obvious questions is— do we believe in the government’s statistics?

In terms of date production, only 5 years ago we were the 5th largest producer of dates in the world and now we are the 4th largest producers in terms of total production. Furthermore, statistics show that our yields have gone up even through the area under dates is smaller. Pakistan has the 5th largest area under dates but production is the fourth highest in the world. Our yield is better than other countries like Algeria and Egypt.

This gives a picture that does not reflect reality. In fact, if international statistics are considered, the yield per hectare makes Pakistan, 10th in the world. This, of course, puts our claim of being the fourth, in doubt.

According to the government statistics, Pakistan is a major producer and consumer. At pre sent, the rate of consumption is 3.75 kgs per capita which includes infants, old people and diabetics.

On top of that, we import 23,000 tons of dates a year which makes Pakistan, a surplus producers, also the third largest date importers in the world, India and the UAE being first and second respectively. Our imports far exceed Bangladesh, sixth on the list of importers, even though BD does not produce dates of their own.

Pakistan’s import of dates has been gradually increasing. In 1961, we imported 5,111 tons; in 1972, 9,017 tons;and in 1984, 12,710 tons. Since the quantum leap in acreage and yields in 1993, Pakistan imported 16,000 tons (1994); 18,000 tons (1996); 23,000 tons (1997); 30,000 tons (1998); and 23,000 tons in 1999. This has made us the largest per capita consumers of dates.

India is the world’s largest importer of dates, importing some 2000,000 tons in addition to some 50,000 tons produced in Kutch and Rajasthan for India’s Hindus who offer one piece each of dates and coconut at temples or before gods as a part of their worship and as such use large quantities of dates. As against India’s annual consumption of 250,000 tons, Pakistan produces 580,000 tons and officially imports 23,000 - 30,000 tons, showing at least a three times higher consumption than India’s having ten times our population. Can this be a fact?

Adding to the confusion spread by the government’s statistics is the fact that even though Pakistan is the fourth largest per acre producers, in 1995 Pakistan happened to be the 19th lowest in terms of prices received per kilogramme of dates.

The situation improved slightly between 1995-1999 as Pakistan, on the average, received $0.42 per kg against $0.35 in 1995, but as the dollar usually depreciates by about 5 per cent annually , the 24 per cent gain was lost in the inflation of the dollar. The prices per kilogramme fetched from export by different countries, shows that Israel and Belgium fetch 10 times our prices; Denmark, Netherlands, Spain, Finland, Cyprus, Australia, Italy, and USA, 8 times our prices; Sweden, Algeria, France, Germany, Tunisia, Mexico, France, and Croatia, 6 times and Libya, China and UK, 4 times.

It is obvious that there is some thing very wrong with our production, processing, marketing and statistics. In general, the following are the major causes of our failures:

1. We do not care for cultural practices as the know-how for date production is lacking.

2. In Pakistan, date harvest usually is a contractor’s job. He cuts down leaves or fronds to reach the bunches which affects fruit bearing capacity and causes heavy berry drop in the year.

3. Climbing trees for various cultural jobs by contractors labour is mostly primitive for efficient and economic handling of fruit.

4. Contractors cut down fronds to sell leaves to mat and basket makers. They make an extra bit of money but at the cost of health and yield of the tree in the current and future years. At least a 100 fronds leaves are needed on the tree and 130 is the best. Contractors leave only 60-70 fronds. This reduces yield to half and produces small berries.

5. India has found border areas with eastern Sindh in the Rajasthan desert as the best area for growing dates, followed by Kutch as second best. This proves that the whole of Sindh can grow dates. We have taken no advantage of the climate.

6. There are rain-tolerant, drought-bearing, salt-resistant varieties of dates the world over. The industry in Sindh concentrates upon only a single variety Aseel, which is medium sized and is attacked by fungus even after mild rains. It is not humidity tolerant. It is a good variety but not among the best varieties.

7. Tissue culture of dates has failed in Pakistan in government institutes with not a single success. Today, UK and France specialise in tissue culture of dates. We can bring thousands or even hundreds of thousands of trees from those sources and immediately grow dates on a large scale in the whole of Sindh and as a second choice up to Multan but not beyond 30xN.

8. European countries import dates, process them scientifically, soften them with about 25 per cent moisture and then export them. We must adopt modern methods of post-harvest technology and install equipment for the purpose.

9. Farmers must be trained in cultural practices.

10. Statistics may be checked to find out about the 580,000 tons of dates claimed to be produced and 530,000 tons left after export to be utilised locally and another 23,000 tons imported to meet short falls.

Date markets: The most advanced countries like Western Europe and North America form a highly sophisticated market and accept only high class dates and are willing to pay high prices for them.

The less industrialised but developed countries like Australia, Argentina, Brazil, the Czech Republic, Fiji Islands, Lithuania, Malta, Mauritius, Mexico, Poland, Portugal, Slovakia and Sweden come in the second category of importers, and pay middle-class prices.

The third class of dates are accepted in Bahamas, Greenland, Iceland, Barbados, Faeroe Islands, Latvia, Panama, Slovenia, Tunisia and Uruguay.

These will be new markets for Pakistan if she enters into post-harvest improvement of dates.

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