Agricultural marketing involves all services that are
employed in moving an agricultural produce from farm to the consumer and
includes planning, sowing, harvesting, picking, grading, transporting, storage
and processing, distribution, marketing and selling etc.
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| Farmers threshing and Packing wheat grains |
Agricultural Marketing Information
Market information generally refers to market price
information, and in some cases includes information on quantities. Marketing
information is a wider concept, including information on marketing channels,
buyers, quality standards and so on.
It includes information of all institutions,
activities and functions to move agricultural produce from farm to consumer.
Agencies Involved in the Information System
1. Agricultural and Livestock Products Marketing and
Grading Department (ALPMGD),
2. The Federal Bureau of Statistics (FBS)
3. The provincial government departments/agencies and
trade associations and producer groups.
Status of Agricultural Marketing in Pakistan
1. Trading in large number of agricultural and
livestock products is freely permitted and is entirely in the hands of private
enterprise.
2. Their internal movement is practically free and
their market prices are determined by supply and demand and other market
forces.
3. The local administration may fix the price of items
such as meat, milk and eggs which come under their jurisdiction.
4. The public sector intervenes in one way or another
in main food grain, sugarcane, cotton and tobacco marketing. The nature of such interference depends on the specific objective.
WHEAT: Wheat
procurement at seasonally fixed prices is made to meet the food requirements of
general consumers and ensure suitable prices to the growers. For current year
2012-13, the procurement price is fixed at Rs. 1200/ 40 kg.
RICE: Rice
is procured for export and to provide incentive to growers to
increase production by ensuring them better prices.
COTTON: The
prices of both lint and seed cotton each season. The ginners have thus to
purchase seed cotton from growers at fixed prices and sell lint at specified
prices.
TOBACCO: Minimum
prices for different grades of tobacco are also fixed seasonally and tobacco
companies are not allowed to buy from growers at lower prices.
