LAHORE, July 24: The Provincial Cost of Production Committee on Monday calculated the production cost of wheat at Rs512 per 40kg and decided to recommend the same to the federal government to be announced as support price.

According to a participant, Ibrahim Mughal - one of the participants of the meeting of AgriForum, said they calculated the price on the basis of rising cost of inputs required for the production of wheat.

The participants, representing government officials and other stakeholders, noted that prices of inputs had gone high during the last few years and they must be reflected in the support price which the federal government announced every year, he said.

The committee also looked into the production cost of other crops and recommended necessary rise in their support prices as well. They put the price of gram at Rs1,100 per 40kg, canola at Rs975 per 40kg and sunflower at Rs1,100.

Mr Mughal said the committee also noted with concern that the federal government had designated Food Minister Sikander Hayat Bosan to look into the crisis as to why farmers did not get the support price of wheat this year, especially during the first phase of procurement.

He said all stakeholders of the wheat trade knew that it was because of laxity of the Punjab government in taking the decision. It failed to take a timely decision about the procurement target and helped price plummet below the support price of Rs415 per 40kg. By the time it belatedly raised the procurement target, most farmers, especially from early sowing areas, had sold most of their crop.