member delegation of Rice Export Association of Pakistan ( REAP) organized a special “Biriyani festival” at a hotel here Sunday to show the Saudi consumers the quality and taste of different kinds of rice Pakistan is exporting worldwide. Pakistan rice export to Saudi Arabia in 2008 was worth $160 million. It has reached $200 million this year. The worldwide export increased to $2 billion. However, the target this year is to export rice worth $2.5 billion. Since last year's visit of the delegation and subsequent efforts of the REAP and the Pakistani Consulate initiatives, Pakistan rice exports to the Kingdom increased by 50% compared to last year. REAP assured the Saudi businessmen of the quality and the fulfillment of the contractual applications, said Malik Muhammad Jahangir, the chairmen of REAP and leader of the delegation. REAP has set up a quality review committee (QRC) to ensure that quality of rice exported from Pakistan meets buyers specifications. Pakistan is also exporting Parboil rice and Sella which has a huge demand in the market. “Our experience at Jeddah Economic Forum was excellent as we met many Saudi businessmen,” said Jahangir. He said that Pakistan is exporting five major types of rice to Saudi Arabia. This year Pakistan has had a bumper crop of more than 6 million tons where 2.5 million ton is for domestic consumption. Last year Pakistan exported three million tons of rice. The current target is to increase it to 3.5 million tons. Pakistan in the first six months exported 89,000 tons of rice to Saudi Arabia, and in coming six months it will export 200,000 tons. Pakistan now has five multi-national inspection agencies to control the quality, said Abdul Rahim Janoo, the co-leader of the delegation and former chairman of REAP. “We want to tell our Saudi partners to come and visit the country and see that Pakistan has the latest machinery and technology at the plants and mills,” said Fuad Hamid Garib, the deputy leader of the delegation. Pakistani exporters know the need of the Saudi market and they are now focusing on the quality, production and competitive price so they can compete in the market, he said.
