Meeting held between University of Agriculture Faisalabad Vice Chancellor Prof. Dr. Iqrar Ahmad Khan and Lahore University of Management Science (LUMS ) School of Science and Engineering’s Department of Biology Chairman Dr Muhammad Tariq at VC Chamber

The value addition of mango and dates and state-of-the-art techniques as per international standards will help the country earn heavy foreign exchanges by tapping world market. It was discussed at a meeting held between University of Agriculture Faisalabad Vice Chancellor Prof Dr Iqrar Ahmad Khan and Lahore University of Management Science (LUMS ) School of Science and Engineering’s Department of Biology Chairman Dr Muhammad Tariq at VC Chamber. Dr Aziz Mitahni from LUMS and Dr Sultan Habibullah from CABB, UAF were also present on the occasion. The meeting also discussed the ways and agreed to collaborate in the areas of the research and value addition of mango and wheat as well. The Vice Chancellor said that production of mangoes stands at 1.8 million per year in the country with limited access to exporting market. He said that quantity of mango get rotten due to non-availability of proper storage which can be improved with the usage of processing technology and preserving methods. Talking about the dates, he said that Pakistan being one of the largest producers of dates is getting significant export prospects. He said the country export of dates potential was more than $200 million per annum., he said that the lack of best farming practices, improper fruit handling techniques, insufficient developed processing facilities are major constraints in this regard. The country annual production is estimated around 540,000 tons, he said. Dr Muhammad Tariq said that agriculture is the backbone of our economy. He also stressed the need to carry out tangible steps and giving the value addition to the commodities in order to compete the world. He said that value addition and state-of-art-art preserving methods are vital to increase the exports and earn the foreign exchanges. He also said that collaboration between both institutes will open up new horizon of progress in the country.