Pakistan Surpasses 6 Million Tons in Rice Production, Ranks 14th Globally

Lahore (Daily Pakistan Online) Agricultural experts at the University of Agriculture in Faisalabad have announced that global rice production has surpassed 483 million tons, with Pakistan contributing over 6 million tons to this total. This impressive yield has catapulted Pakistan to the 14th position among the world’s top rice-producing countries and the 4th position among the leading rice-exporting nations.

According to the experts, the major rice-importing countries worldwide include Nigeria, Iran, China, the Philippines, and Indonesia. On the other hand, the top rice-exporting countries are India, Vietnam, Thailand, Pakistan, Brazil, and Uruguay. Notably, out of Pakistan’s total rice production of 6 million tons, a staggering 4.5 million tons are exported to various countries around the globe.

Rice is the second most lucrative cash crop in Pakistan, after cotton, and is cultivated on 11% of the country’s total arable land. This crop generates billions of rupees in revenue annually. The experts revealed that 71% of Pakistan’s total rice cultivation takes place in Punjab, which also accounts for 63% of the country’s national rice production.

In Punjab province alone, 4.598 million acres of land were dedicated to paddy cultivation this year, yielding 3.815 million tons of rice. The average yield per acre was 37 maunds. The Rice Research Institute has introduced 22 varieties of paddy, 13 of which are currently being cultivated in Punjab.

The experts attributed the significant increase in rice production to research conducted at the Rice Research Institute, which has led to the discovery of new high-yielding paddy varieties. As a result, the area under paddy cultivation has increased by 548%, production has risen by 1235%, and yield per acre has improved by 120%.