A seed company from east China’s Jiangsu province has sent a shipment of 500 tonnes of hybrid rice seeds to support Pakistan’s rice yield in 2020.
The seeds would be planted on approximately 33,333 hectares of land.
Jiangsu Hongqi Seed Industry Company, engaged in wholesale and retail of crop seeds in China, reached an agreement with Pakistani customers to ship hybrid rice seeds after the spring festival earlier this year.
The delay in shipment occurred due to the coronavirus epidemic as seeds could not be processed and packaged according to schedule.
Customs of Taizhou city in China’s Jiangsu province extended their cooperation in shipping the seeds by opening a green channel and streamlining the process.
“If these seeds could not be delivered to our customers in time, our business and reputation could be damaged, while the local grain yield in Pakistan could also be affected,” said Zha Lianqun, General Manager of the company.
Pakistan has struggled to combat locust plagues which have destroyed crops and threatened the livelihoods of farmers since the tag end of 2019.
“This batch of seeds will help ensure the grain yield of Pakistan this year,” Zha said, adding that China will provide more technical assistance and work with Pakistan to fight the locust disaster.
China and Pakistan have seen closer cooperation in agriculture in recent years since the launch of the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor initiative.
