Third vessel carrying 69,000 tonnes wheat reaches Karachi port

KARACHI: The third vessel namely MV Coventy carrying 69,000 metric tonnes of wheat from Ukraine has reached Karachi port.

A total of 195,000 metric tonnes wheat has been imported through three vessels since last week of August by the private sector with support by the Ministry of National Food Security and Research.

The experts of federal Department of Plant Protection (DPP) undertook the mandatory quarantine inspection of the vessel to check biosecurity risks on Wednesday evening. The discharge was instantly granted to vessel after satisfactory phytosanitary examination.

The federal food ministry is in close liaison with concerned provincial authorities to ensure the unhindered movement of wheat cargoes from Karachi to other parts of the country.

A significant impact of recent wheat import has been observed on wheat flour prices in the country. It is expected that this impact will be more apparent in next few days when the imported-wheat reaches to flour mills in various parts of the country.

READ MORE: Another vessel carrying wheat imported from Ukraine reaches Karachi

It is known that the hoarded wheat in the country has also come to the surface as a result of recent wheat import besides the government’s anti-hoarding operations.

Federal Minister for National Food Security Syed Fakhar Imam has reassured the government’s commitment to providing essential food commodities at affordable prices.

The ministry’s secretary Omar Hamid Khan has been supervising the wheat import process including liaison with concerned authorities in wheat-exporting countries, timely port inspection on arrival of the vessel, and unobstructed transportation of wheat from Karachi port.

These efforts have greatly contributed to the landing cost of wheat on Karachi port. More wheat import vessels are scheduled to arrive at Karachi port with the gap of 4-5 days each, which will curb the higher wheat prices and may give great relief to common masses.