Pakistan is once again facing a wheat crisis

A Dawn opinion piece dated August 24, 2026 argues that Pakistan faces another wheat shortage despite official claims of a satisfactory 2026 harvest. Flour prices are still climbing, provincial governments have raised concerns about supply, and flour millers want federal permission to import wheat. The government is now moving toward imports to cover a projected shortfall in local supply relative to demand.

The writer ties the problem to the FY26 procurement drop, when the federal government sharply cut public buying on the view that private traders would handle it more efficiently. Farmers, already squeezed by rising costs of fertiliser, diesel, power, irrigation, pesticides and labour, sold soon after harvest, often below production costs. Private traders bought the crop cheaply, stored it and released it gradually as prices rose.

The column says the National Wheat Policy shrinks the state's role in procurement, storage and price stabilisation, while Passco's role has declined. It also links the National Seed Policy and IMF and World Bank-backed reforms to a shift of power towards private capital. The writer calls for stronger public procurement, strategic reserves and a strengthened Passco, framing the issue as one of food sovereignty.