AGRICULTURE, long hailed as the back-bone of national economy, is quietly slipping into a state of alarming decline. After prolonged crises in sugarcane, cotton and wheat sectors, it is apparently time for kinno to sail in the same troubled boat. The flagship horticultural crop has been a major source of foreign exchange for long, but that status is now in danger.
This is not an isolated failure of one crop; it is a pattern of neglect that threatens farmers’ livelihoods and the country’s economic stability. Kinno farming once symbolised hope.
Pakistan emerged as one of the world’s leading kinno producers, supporting domestic markets and exporting to the Middle East, Central Asia and beyond. Today, growers are grappling with falling yields, pest attacks, rising input costs, water scarcity and fast-shrinking export competitiveness.
Prices at the farm gates have collapsed, while costs of fertilisers, diesel, electricity and packaging have surged beyond reach. The result is quite predictable: farmers are trapped between mounting losses and vanishing options. Kinno farming is following a downward trajectory, signalling a systemic failure rather than merely a crop-specific misfortune.
Due to heavy losses, many farmers have uprooted their kinno plants because they can no longer afford to wait for better days to arrive. The tragedy is that farmers have little room left to manoeuvre.
Agriculture is no longer a viable fall-back; it is becoming a high-risk gamble. Small- and medium-scale farmers, in particular, are being squeezed out. When agriculture weakens, the ripple effects are felt across employment, exports, food security and rural stability. An economy that undermines its farmers ultimately undermines itself.
For kinno, urgent steps are required to keep the country globally competitive. Exploring new markets, simplifying export procedures, and providing incentives for processing industries can help revive the sector.
Most importantly, the farmers must be assured fair and timely returns so that they may sustain their livelihoods with dignity. If agriculture continues to decline, the cost will be greater than falling crop.
Muhammad Salim
Islamabad
Published in Dawn, February 20th, 2026
