Pakistan won't import wheat in 2009, sees excess: Reuters

By Amena Bakr

DUBAI, May 17 (Reuters) - Pakistan will not import wheat this year as government incentives to farmers will likely lead to an excess supply of the grain, an official from the ministry of agriculture said on Sunday.

Pakistan, Asia's third-largest wheat producer, hopes to have an excess supply of 2 - 2.5 tonnes of wheat this year compared to last, said Amjad Nazir, the joint secretary at Pakistan's Ministry of Food and Agriculture.

"There will be no need for us to import wheat this year because the ministry has raised the minimum price of wheat for farmers which encouraged them to allocate more land to grow wheat," he told Reuters during a visit to the United Arab Emirates to encourage investment into the sector.

In September, Pakistan raised the price it pays farmers for wheat by 34 percent to 950 rupees ($11.74) per 40 kilograms, in a bid to encourage them to grow more.

The wheat-growing area had increased this year to 9 million hectares from an average of 8.5 million in previous years. On average, Pakistan imports around 2 millon tonnes of wheat every year.

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