Joint Pakistan-China peanut cultivation can counter high edible oil prices

ISLAMABAD: Pak-China cooperation on peanut cultivation can be a solution to high edible oil prices, says a report published by Gwadar Pro on Sunday.

Earlier this month, the National Price Monitoring Committee (NPMC) in Pakistan asked the Ministry of Industries & Production (MoIP) to control edible oil prices by exploring alternative options for the imported palm and soya bean oil. Shandong Rainbow Agricultural Technology Co., Ltd in China has been planing a Pak-China peanut oil cooperation for a few years, which may meet Pakistan’s demand.

“To continue China-Pakistan agricultural projects, our company registered a new company in Pakistan and appointed me as the CEO. The peanut oil cooperation is our key project,” said Babar Ijaz, overseas business manager at Shandong Rainbow Agricultural Technology Co., Ltd and CEO of Sino-Pak Agriculture Pvt. Ltd.

“Peanut oil is the world’s best frying oil. Its smog point is near 260 degrees centigrade. Peanut contains more than 50 percent oil. Once we are self-sufficient in peanut production, we can produce more by-products for export.

“We can also reduce our import bill of edible oil,” said Muhammad Jahanzaib, scientific officer of the Oil Seed Research Program in National Agricultural Research Center (NARC) in Pakistan. He reveals that NARC has started to attach importance to peanut industry in Pakistan.”