Pakistan may cut its edible oil import bill by promoting oil-seed crops like sunflower, said Dr Ishtiaq Hussain, Additional Director General of Agriculture (Farm & Training), reports WealthPK.

Addressing a meeting at the Ayub Agricultural Research Institute (AARI) in Faisalabad convened to approve Sunflower Production Project 2023, Dr Ishtiaq said sunflower is an important edible oil producing crop which can not only play a pivotal role in catering to the domestic food requirements, but also help growers overcome their financial issues.

“This crop takes 100 to 125 days to mature with comparatively less cost and very high dividend,” he said.

He said that farmers should cultivate the crop over maximum space of their lands, and teams of agriculture department had been activated for training and guidance of sunflower growers.

He said the agriculture department field staff was also helping and guiding the farmers in purchase of sunflower seeds and in-time cultivation. He suggested that the farmers use the approved seed varieties for sunflower cultivation, because they have sufficient disease resistance and can give the maximum yield even during odd and harsh weathers.

After a thorough discussion, the meeting approved the Sunflower Production Project 2023.

Deputy Director of Pest Warning Faisalabad Dr Amir Rasool, Deputy Director of Research Information Unit Dr Asif Ali, and Chairman of Agronomy Department at MNS Agriculture University Multan Prof Dr Abdul Ghaffar were also present at the meeting.

Credit: Independent News Pakistan-WealthPk