Pakistan could eat India’s share of basmati rice exports

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Rice glucose is the main ingredient for pharmaceutical, confectionery, and juice industries. PHOTO: FILE


KARACHI: Pakistan could target India’s basmati rice share in the global market, a likelihood sparked by stringent policies placed by the European Union (EU) on the presence of hazardous pesticides in the commodity, said an official.

From January 1, 2018, all countries that export basmati rice to the EU must bring down the maximum residue limit (MRL) level for Tricyclazole, a pesticide, to 0.01 mg per kg. Up till now, the EU was accepting 0.03 mg per kg from different countries, including India.

Pakistan’s rice exports suffer as govt looks the other way

The chance that Pakistan could eat up a share of India’s market comes from the fact that the country’s farmers do not use such chemicals to protect their crops.

However, Indian farmers widely use the pesticide under scrutiny and exporters fear that up to 95% of basmati shipments could take a hit by the new regulation.

Since new EU regulations could completely choke off Indian basmati exports, an Indian government delegation is leaving for Brussels this week to discuss the restrictions.

On the other hand, a Pakistani basmati exporter says this presents an opportunity to grab India’s market share, because it will at least take two cycles to reduce the consumption of Tricyclazole in the country.

“Pakistan currently exports 100,000 tons of basmati to the EU a year, which can go up to 250,000 tons per annum after EU regulations,” Matco Foods Pvt Limited Director Faizan Ali Ghori told The Express Tribune.

India, the world’s biggest exporter of basmati rice with a share of about 70%, exported 350,000 tons of basmati to the EU worth $268 million in fiscal year 2016-17.

Raising Rs1 billion from the stock market

Meanwhile, Matco Foods – one of the leading basmati rice exporters in Pakistan – is expecting to raise Rs1 billion through the Initial Public Offering (IPO) it has planned for around September this year.

The company plans to invest the proceeds in its two rice glucose plants in Karachi. Rice glucose is the main ingredient for pharmaceutical, confectionery, and juice industries.

“We want to move towards value added products to increase exports,” said Ghori.

The company exports rice to over 60 countries.

Matco’s first rice glucose with a capacity of 10,000 tons per annum is being commissioned in Karachi at an investment of Rs350 million. The other factory will have a capacity of 20,000 tons that will be set up in the next one to two years.

The company will prefer international markets as it expects to fetch as much as $11,000 per ton against a price range of just $400-$500 per ton in the domestic market, Ghori said, adding that there is a growing demand in western markets for rice glucose.

Currently, there are two rice glucose factories in Pakistan – both in Karachi due to proximity to ports and export markets.

Matco’s management believes the demand for rice glucose will increase because it is not genetically modified and safer for children. At present, over 90% domestic demand of pharmaceutical and confectionary industries is being met by corn glucose.

CPEC opens avenues for agri-exports

“There is so much room for diversification in rice exports because Pakistan does not make value added products from rice that have huge domestic as well as international demand,” he added.

https://tribune.com.pk/story/1456663/pakistan-eat-indias-share-basmati-rice-exports/