ISLAMABAD: The Fede­ral Board of Revenue (FBR) on Monday announced ex-mill sugar price for levy of sales tax to contain the rising rate of the sweetener.

A sales tax notification SRO1027 of 2021 was issued to fix ex-mill sugar price at Rs72.22 per kg. Earlier before the announcement of the budget 2021-22, millers declared cost of sugar at Rs68 per kg in their returns.

In the last budget, the government had also changed the mode of the sales tax levy to the retail level. In the open market, sugar is being sold at Rs104 per kg.

The Pakistan Sugar Mills Association (PSMA) had earlier refused to sell sugar at the government-prescribed ex-mill price of Rs70 per kg. However, PSMA has yet to release its official response on the new ex-mill sugar price.

In a separate meeting to review the price trend of essential commodities, Spec­ial Assistant on Food Sec­urity Jamshed Cheema brie­fed Finance Minister Shau­kat Tarin on building strategic reserves of essential food commodities nam­ely wheat, sugar, pulses, edible oil/ghee, tomatoes, onion, garlic and chicken to prevent hoa­rding and undue profiteering.

The underlying rationale is to stabilise the prices of items of daily use. The government will build the strategic reserves by importing 10-20pc of the total consumption of the staple food items and supply into the market when needed in order to bridge the supply and demand gap. This will check the price fluctuation effectively.

Mr Tarin directed the ministries concerned to acc­elerate the import of wheat and sugar and ensure that sufficient stocks are available for smooth supply during the current financial year. He also directed the ministries and the Trading Corp­oration of Pakistan to exercise due diligence and take appropriate measures for risk hedging while floating tenders in international market.

The finance minister urged the representatives of the provincial governments to take corrective measures for reducing price differential between farm and retail prices. He emphasised the need to review the entire food value chain and ensure that the farmers get a commensurate share of market value of their produce.

Mr Cheema stated that farmers must follow the int­e­r­national best practices and look into alternate opt­ions for perishable commodities like tomato puree, onion po­w­der, garlic powder etc to meet peak demand due to seasonal variations. This will offer cost-effective products for the consumers as well.

National Food Security Minister Fakhar Imam and SAPM on Finance and Reve­nue Dr Waqar Masood and other senior officials participated in the meeting.

Published in Dawn, August 17th, 2021