‘Inefficient agri methods a threat to food security’

FAISALABAD: Inefficient methods of agriculture are making cost of production higher than the international market, which is not only aggravating the problems of the farmers but also posing a threat to food security.

This was stated by University of Agriculture Faisalabad Vice-Chancellor Dr Iqrar Ahmad Khan while addressing a second consultative meeting on current status and future prospectus of adoption of precision agriculture in Pakistan arranged by the university’s Centre for Advanced Studies in Agriculture and Food Security here on Saturday. He said that the country was ranked lowest in the adoption of biotechnology. He said that only in the case of wheat, progressive farmers were getting 80 maund per acre against the average per acre production of 28 maund. This was a big gap between potential yield and the production of small farmers, he said, adding that developed countries were using the system of precision agriculture and cooperative farming, resulting in increasing the production manifolds. He said that precision agriculture would help address the problems, including low production and high cost of production to ensure the food security.

Dalhousie University, Canada, Precision Agriculture Chair Dr Qamar Zaman said that 30 per cent of the fertilizer could be saved by using the modern technologies. He said that the world population would touch to 9 billion and cropland area was decreasing. He said that the smart controller and sprayer would be helpful to decrease the cost of production.

Farmers Associate Pakistan CEO Afaq Tiwana said that the farming community must be educated about the benefits of mechanisation that would not only increase the production but also minimise the cost of production. He said that the modern trend and technology needed to be adopted as the precision agriculture had gained immense importance in the world.

CAS Chief of Party Dr Bashir Ahmad stressed the need to find the solutions to the problems of the farming community. He said that the precision agriculture was the answer to the issue of increasing cost of production. He said that the country was blessed with tremendous resources but there was the need to tap the potential. He said that the USPCAS-AFS was working in five dimensions, including precision agriculture.

Faculty of Agricultural Engineering Dean Dr Allah Bakhsh said that ground and underground water quality was deteriorating and the measures must be taken in this regard.

CAS Precision Agriculture Chair Head Dr Muhammad Jehanzeb Cheema said that the consultative meetings were being conducted to promote the technology in the country. PARC Agricultural Engineering Division DG Dr Munir Ahmad called for adopting the precision agriculture in the country. He said that the country was facing different challenges, including food security and water scarcity. He said that initiatives were taken to address the issues at the national level. Eng Azhar Noor, Dr Umar Fareed from the BZU, Dr Abu Bakr, Dr Hassan from the UET, Peshawar, and others also spoke on the occasion.