ISLAMABAD: Pakistan is considering using the Iran corridor to export the surplus quantity of potatoes it has produced to Central Asian countries, Food Security Minister Rana Tanveer Hussain said on Monday as Islamabad grapples with a potato price glut triggered by the Afghan border closure.
Potato prices in Pakistan fell sharply as Islamabad closed its Chaman and Torkham border crossings with Afghanistan in October 2025 after fierce clashes between both countries left dozens dead.
Afghanistan is a huge market for Pakistani potatoes. The suspension of trade with Kabul has created an oversupply of the vegetable in Pakistan, leading to a sharp decline in its prices. Pakistani farmers have complained of suffering heavy losses as the border crossings remain closed.
Speaking at a meeting of the National Assembly Standing Committee on Food Security, Hussain said the border closures had initially caused problems but Islamabad has identified an alternative route to export potatoes to Central Asian countries.
“Authorities are considering the Zahedan-Taftan land route,” Hussain told participants of the meeting.
Hussain said Pakistan generally stores 7 to 8 million metric tons of potatoes annually, adding that the country does not have the capacity to store more than that.
“However, this year 13 million metric tons of potatoes were cultivated, which has caused the market to crash,” he explained.
Pakistan exports vegetables, particularly potatoes, a big chunk of which goes to Tajikistan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan and beyond via Afghanistan.
Hussain said another alternative trade route, one to China, was even shorter but the multiple visa requirement there would create complications for Pakistani exporters.
He said due to the mountainous terrain in China, fuel and other transportation costs would also be higher.
The Commerce Division officials present at the meeting said the route through Iran is longer compared to Afghanistan.
“The prime minister is personally looking into the issue,” Hussain assured members of the committee.
The minister said Russia was not importing Pakistan’s potatoes as it had imposed restrictions due to quality issues a few years earlier.
Pakistan’s agriculture sector accounted for 24 percent of the country’s gross domestic product (GDP) and employed more than 37 percent of its labor force in 2024, according to the Economic Survey 2024-25.
Landlocked Afghanistan has also leaned more heavily on trade routes via Iran and Central Asia since the border closures last year, as it aims to reduce its dependence on Pakistan amid surging tensions between the neighbors.
