KARACHI: Pakistan’s maize exports have witnessed an extreme free fall during the first three months of 2025 after a remarkable surge in 2024, as revealed by recent Department of Plant Protection (DPP) trade data. The nosedive trend has raised concerns among farmers, businessmen, and economists about sustainability, market stability, and the ill-advised phytosanitary policies of the government regarding the exports of the country’s maize and other agricultural commodities.
According to DPP maize export data for the week ending March 29, 2025, from January 1, 2025, Pakistani exporters sold abroad 147,057.57 metric tons of maize to 46 countries from January to March 2023 as feed and food corn. This figure observed an unprecedented 185.2% growth in 2024, with total corn trade to 34 countries reaching 419,432.67 metric tons in the first three months of the year. However, Pakistani exporters could not sustain the previous momentum in the first three months of 2025, and their corn trade remained restricted to 12 countries, leading to a drastic drop in maize exports to 53,725.85 metric tons, marking an 87.19% crash compared to the same corresponding period in 2024 and a 63.46% decline compared to the same parallel period in 2023.
The data further highlighted that Pakistan’s corn exports to Bahrain, Bangladesh, Brunei Darussalam, China, France, Indonesia, Kazakhstan, Kenya, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Madagascar, Romania, Seychelles, Singapore, Somalia, Timor-Leste, and Vietnam from January 2025 to March 29, 2025, have plunged to zero, indicating a 100% decrease.
The biggest importer of Pakistani maize remained Afghanistan, which imported 35,949.39 metric tons, accounting for a significant share (66.91%) of total exports. Other key buyers include the Philippines (11,332.43 metric tons), Malaysia (3,428.80 metric tons), Uzbekistan (815.58 metric tons), Qatar (536.94 metric tons), UAE (528 metric tons), and Sri Lanka (500 metric tons), having shares of 21.09%, 6.38%, 1.5%, 0.99%, 0.98%, and 0.93%, respectively. However, a substantial decline in Pakistan’s corn exports to Afghanistan (46.95%), Hong Kong (90%), Malaysia (89.86%), Oman (98.89%), the Philippines (54.58%), Qatar (91.98%), Sri Lanka (97.26%), and UAE (90.29%) was observed during the first three months of 2025 compared to the same period last year.
Vietnam had emerged as a potential market for Pakistani 100% non-GMO corn over the past five years after extensive market access negotiations between the DPP and the Department of Plant Protection, Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, Hanoi, Vietnam, with the assistance of the Trade and Investment Attaché of the Pakistani Embassy in Hanoi, Vietnam.
Pakistan witnessed a historic 56.866% increase in corn exports to Vietnam in the first three months of 2024 by exporting 192,707.48 metric tons compared to 83,120.70 metric tons in the same period in 2023. However, it could not sustain its previous momentum in the first three months of 2025 despite having a surplus of 6 million metric tons from a total production of 9.6 million metric tons. As a result, its corn exports to Vietnam slumped to zero, marking a 100% decrease.
Insiders in the sector attribute the 87.19% steep downfall in corn exports during the first three months of 2025 to the government’s indiscreet policies. They criticized the government for appointing its politically favored, non-technical bureaucrats—Mr. Waqas Alam from the PAS group and Mr. Tahir Abbas from the customs group—as Director Generals of DPP, replacing qualified and experienced officers Dr. Allah Ditta Abid and Dr. Muhammad Tariq Khan. Furthermore, they alleged that these officers were politically victimized on non-mandated charges, leading to the non-adoption of corrective phytosanitary measures in non-compliant exporters’ establishments while continuing to allow compliant exporters to trade with Vietnam over the past four months.
During the tenures of Dr. Allah Ditta Abid and Dr. Muhammad Tariq Khan (2023-2024) as Director Generals of DPP, Pakistan’s agricultural and food product exports soared to a record $8 billion, a 37% increase from the previous year’s $5.8 billion. This unmatched growth was achieved through adherence to and recognition of quarantine inspections and phytosanitary certifications by DPP, in compliance with the National Plant Protection Organizations (NPPOs) of trading partner countries. Pakistan’s key exports meeting these phytosanitary import standards included rice ($3.9 billion), sesame seeds ($410 million), corn ($421 million), onions ($224 million), mangoes ($46.7 million), and citrus fruits ($166 million), which have unfortunately been on a downward trend for the past four months, a Ministry of National Food Security & Research (MoNFS&R) insider said.
Dr. Muhammad Basit, Director of Quarantine, imposed a blanket, self-imposed restriction on the export of corn to Vietnam after receiving just 5 to 6 notifications regarding Pakistani corn interceptions from Vietnam’s Plant Protection Department (NPPO of Vietnam) during 2024. Instead of taking corrective measures as required by ISPM-13 and IPPC guidelines, he allegedly enforced a harsh ban, despite Vietnam never officially notifying such a restriction to DPP. This decision triggered a 100% collapse in maize exports to Vietnam in the first three months of 2025.
MoNFS&R recently withdrew two of Dr. Muhammad Basit’s additional charges as Director Quarantine, BS-19, and Director Pesticides Registration, BS-19, following several complaints of corruption, withholding public files, and delaying decisions. This action was finally coupled with an alarm raised by the Ministry of Commerce in its recent meeting with MoNFS&R over the vertical decrease in corn exports, causing a loss of more than $50 million to the national exchequer due to DPP’s ill-advised, self-imposed ban. This wake-up call prompted MoNFS&R to instruct Mr. Tahir Abbas, DG DPP, to immediately allow exports to Vietnam.
In response, MoNFS&R assigned the current charge of Director Quarantine, BS-19, to Dr. Muhammad Ishfaque, Deputy Director Quarantine, BS-18, who was transferred from Lahore to Karachi’s head office despite already having applied for Leave Preparatory to Retirement (LPR).
Dr. Ishfaque eventually issued the much-awaited Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) via a circular dated March 26, 2025, for the export of corn to Vietnam, after a delay of more than six months. However, key officials, including Mr. Imtiaz Hussain, Deputy Director Quarantine (Hq.), and Dr. Khalid Zaffar, Entomologist, have already applied for LPR, allegedly demoralized by the wrong policies of DPP and MoNFS&R.
Key SOPs for compliance prior to corn exports to Vietnam include exporter warehouse registration with DPP, installation of Khapra beetle monitoring and control pheromone traps, storage of corn in perforated polypropylene (PP) bags instead of jute bags, container hygiene before loading commodities, exclusive warehouse storage for corn, strict sanitation and disinfestation of warehouses with methyl bromide @ 80gm/m³ upon detection of Khapra beetle, regular warehouse inspections, export permission for accredited units, and mandatory fumigation of corn consignments at ports with methyl bromide @ 100gm/m³ for 72 hours under DPP supervision.
Experts believe that without involving provincial food authorities and agriculture departments to make production areas pest-free, monitor pesticide residues, and ensure proper post-harvest handling, neither DPP nor the newly proposed NFSA can mitigate corn interception risks in Vietnam. The months ahead will be crucial in determining whether DPP can manage this decline or if the trend continues, signaling poor administration by DPP and MoNFS&R.
