Pakistan: 'Seedless variety of kinnows to increase its exports'

Kinnow was first developed by HB Frost at the University of California at Riverside in 1935 by cross-pollinating the King and the Willow-Leaf varieties of mandarin, according to Handbook of Fruits and Fruit Processing (Wiley, John and Sons 2006).

But Pakistan has emerged as one of the leading producer of citrus fruits in the world. The citrus fruit types, varying from kinnow (mandarin), oranges, lemon, lime and grapefruit grows primarily in plains of Pujnab province, including Sargodha, Sahiwal, Faisalabd, Toba Tek Singh and in some areas of NWFP including Nowshera, Khanpur and Palai (Swat). Kinnow is the major export item among citrus types, however, its export share in the world market is as low as 1.4 percent.

“Share of Pakistani citrus in the world market is just 1.4 percent about $33 million and out of that $32 million is share of kinnow, meaning that other citrus exports earn only $1 million for Pakistan,” said National Agriculture Research Council Coordinator Fruit Crops Dr Hafeez-ur-Rehman. On the other hand, share of citrus in total exports of fruits and vegetables is about 19.5 percent and its share in the country’s total exports is about 0.26 percent.

Russia, Iran, Ukraine, UAE, Saudi Arabia, Philippine, Indonesia, United Kingdom, Canada, Denmark, Germany, Norway and Greece are the largest export markets for Pakistani kinnow. Official data reveals that this year’s kinnow exports are expected to be 232,000 metric tonnes, as compared to the exports of 215,000 million tonnes during the last season. The main cause of positive trend in export this year would be high productivity.

According to Pakistan Horticulture Development Board (PHDEB), total citrus production is expected to increase from 2 million tonnes during last season to 2.1 million tonnes this year. The total area under citrus cultivation in Pakistan at present is about 1.85 million hectares. Pakistani kinnow is grown under totally natural conditions and is sun-ripened on the trees and carefully hand picked at precisely the right time, which enhances its export value.