PARC To Establish 574 M2 Aeroponics Green Houses And 21,600 M2 Screen Houses

ISLAMABAD, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 14th Dec, 2023) Pakistan Agriculture Research Council (PARC) in collaboration with Korea Program on International Agriculture (KOPIA) will construct 574 m2 aeroponics green houses and 21,600 m2 screen houses in order to enhance output of potatoes and to achieve self-sufficiency in certified seed potato production.

The facility will be established under the project “Pakistan-Korea Joint Program on Certified Seed Potato Production System” to produce 160,000 tons of certified seed potato annually, said an official of PARC here on Thursday.

He said that in this regard the KOPIA signed technical cooperation projects and contract for construction of green/screen houses for seed potato production through Aeroponics.

The Aeroponics potato projects will pave ways for self-sufficiency in seed potato production, he said adding that innovations in agricultural research will maximize agricultural productivity, he added.

Pakistan and Republic of Korea are working jointly on agriculture technology transfer projects for seed potato production through aeroponics, fodder production, chili drying and improvement in artificial insemination in cattle, he added.

He said that the conventional potato plants typically yield only five tuber seeds, whereas aeroponics plants have the potential to produce 50 to 60 seeds each, he said adding that the Pakistan currently cultivates potatoes on approximately 300,000 hectares of land.

Due to the substandard quality of domestic seeds, the country imports 15,000 to 20,000 tons of potato seeds annually, he said adding that by implementing the aeroponics potato seed project, Pakistan could potentially save Rs2-3 billion each year and attain self-sufficiency in potato seed production.