June 14, 2026
Farm losses far exceed storage fund
Experts say the Rs7.1 billion earmarked in Budget 2026-27 for farm storage is far below the scale of agricultural losses, with wheat losses alone estimated at over Rs140 billion annually. They say Pakistan’s weak warehousing, cold-chain and financing systems are driving heavy post-harvest wastage.
June 14, 2026
ISLAMABAD: The federal government’s decision to set aside Rs7.1 billion in Budget 2026-27 for agricultural storage infrastructure has drawn concern from sector representatives and agricultural experts, who say the amount is small compared with the scale of losses suffered across the farm economy.
The concerns come against the backdrop of annual wheat losses alone exceeding Rs140 billion. Agriculture Republic Co-Founder Aamer Hayat Bhandara said Pakistan’s storage network remains a major weakness in the agricultural value chain, citing limited warehousing capacity, outdated facilities, weak cold-chain systems, poor handling and heavy losses linked to pests and moisture. While wheat has relatively better support because of public procurement arrangements, he said crops such as maize, fruits, vegetables and pulses remain far more exposed to post-harvest damage.
Mahmood Nawaz Shah, vice president of the Sindh Abadgar Board, said losses across agriculture become much larger when pre-harvest, post-harvest and storage-related wastage are viewed together.
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