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Food import cargoes piling up at Karachi port as tough new rules bite

By Javed Mirza
February 16, 2018

KARACHI: At least 200 cargoes, carrying tons of herbs and spices, are lined up at the Karachi port waiting to offload following tightened procedures and regulations for traders in the recently amended import policy, industry officials said on Thursday.

“The food companies are facing problems as clearance of raw material consignments almost came to a halt following the introduction of new safety, health, and procedural requirements, demanding complete compliance from importers,” an industry source said.

The commerce division issued SRO 1067 (I)/2017 to amend the Import Policy order 2016 in October 2017 linking import of around 600 items including herbs, spices, fruits, dry fruits, grains, recipes, convenience food, and other edible raw materials with animal quarantine department certification, phytosanitary certification, and plant protection release order of ministry of national food security and research.

An official at a branded food company, requesting anonymity, told The News they were facing raw material supply issues as all of their products required spices and herbs, which they either import or purchase from importers.

“A substantial portion of our off-take comprises exports, and we are having difficulty in getting the supplies due to these regulatory measures. If… imports are not restored we will not be able to meet our export orders,” the official said.

Mohammad Rizwan of Kaka Traders, a leading importer, said around 200 containers of spices, herbs, dried vegetables and other edible ingredients were stuck at the ports for at least a month. “The clearance of imported consignments has stopped, while imports of these goods have declined 90 percent after import policy order was amended under SRO 1067(I)/2018,” Rizwan said.

He said due to the complicated and drawn-out process, the concerned departments are taking too long and had not issued any permits and required certifications as yet creating a huge backlog that was multiplying by the day.

Kaka said food companies, being major buyers of these items were also in a pickle because of this issue, which would definitely hurt their business and profitability.

“Though clearance of imported goods remains stayed, these items are still available in the market as demand is being met through smuggling from neighboring countries,” Kaka said and added that the government was also losing revenue due to this crisis, which could be prevented by taking corrective measures.

In addition to a number of food companies 10 food manufacturers and processors are listed on the stock exchange, which constitute a major portion of spices and herbs import. For the half year ended December 31, 2017, Pakistan imported spices, dry fruits and nuts worth $165 million. Most of these items are imported from Indonesia, Vietnam, Dubai, etc.