Pakistan Wheat Import Committee Meets: Dar Asks for Simpler Import Procedures, No Quantity Announced
Deputy PM Ishaq Dar chaired the wheat import committee on 21 October 2026. The release names no quantity or price. See what it says and what flour costs now.
Deputy Prime Minister Ishaq Dar chaired a meeting of the government's committee on wheat import in Islamabad on 21 October 2026, and told federal and provincial authorities to simplify import procedures where needed. The official release gives no import quantity, price, date or approval. So it is a review and an instruction, not an import order.
We read the Press Information Department's release for 21 October 2026 on 22 October 2026. This page explains what the committee looked at, what it did not announce, and what the flour price numbers around it show.
Dar chaired the wheat import committee on 21 October 2026
The release says the committee reviewed current domestic wheat reserves, projected demand and the supply chain. Its stated focus was grain availability and price stability in all provinces.
The Federal Minister for National Food Security and Research attended, along with the Sindh food minister, a special assistant to the Prime Minister, the Prime Minister's coordinator on agriculture and food security, and the secretaries of the food, commerce and law ministries. Senior officials from the provinces, Azad Jammu and Kashmir and Gilgit-Baltistan also took part.
The release orders closer coordination and simpler import procedures
Dar stressed food security safeguards to protect consumers from market ups and downs. He directed federal and provincial authorities to coordinate closely, simplify import procedures where needed, and keep distribution networks running across the country.
The wording is conditional. "Where needed" does not say imports are needed now. The release also does not say whether the committee has approved any purchase, who would import, or whether private traders or a public body would do it.
| Point | In the 21 October release |
|---|---|
| Meeting chair | Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar |
| Subjects reviewed | Reserves, projected demand, supply chain |
| Direction given | Coordinate, simplify import procedures where needed, keep distribution running |
| Import quantity | Not stated |
| Import price or source country | Not stated |
| Reserve stock figure | Not stated |
Flour is already 35 percent dearer than a year ago
The meeting follows two big weekly price rises. In our reports of the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics (PBS) figures, the average 20 kg flour bag reached Rs 2,946.72 in the week ended 15 October 2026, up Rs 95.68 in a week and 35.13 percent above a year earlier.
Loose wheat was Rs 1,359 for 10 kg in the week ended 8 October, which our report on the wheat price in Pakistan converts to about Rs 5,437 a maund (40 kg). The PBS release for the week ended 22 October had not appeared when we checked, so we do not have a newer figure.
Provinces have already acted on their own
Punjab's chief minister approved a Rs 10 billion subsidy on 10 October, as reported, to sell government wheat to mills at Rs 3,800 a maund. Our report on the Punjab flour subsidy has the detail. Sindh's chief minister said on the same day that his province has enough stock, as we recorded in his statement on wheat stocks in Sindh.
Both are statements and provincial measures. The federal committee's release does not mention either, and does not say how provincial stock and federal imports would be combined.
What a household can do while no import is announced
Nothing in the release changes the price you pay today. It does not set a flour rate. Shopkeepers who cite "the import decision" as a reason for a higher price are citing something that has not been announced.
- Compare your local bag price with the weekly PBS average in our flour price report.
- Use the wheat maund to flour price converter to check what a fair kilo price looks like.
- Report overcharging to the district price control office, which is a provincial body.
- Buy only what you need for a few weeks, so you are not paying a peak price for storage.
- Wait for a written notice from the food ministry before believing any message about "imported wheat rates".
What to watch for next
Three documents would turn this meeting into a real decision: a food ministry notification that approves an import quantity, a tender or purchase notice that names the buyer, and a statement of reserve stock. Until one of them appears on an official page, a message that says "wheat import approved" is a claim, not a decision.
Weekly PBS price tables will show whether the pressure on flour is easing. Our weekly reports follow them, and we will add a dated note to this page if the ministry publishes an import notice.
Common questions
Has Pakistan approved wheat imports?
Not according to the release. It says the committee reviewed reserves and demand and asked for simpler procedures where needed. It states no approval or quantity.
Who chaired the meeting?
Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Senator Mohammad Ishaq Dar chaired it in Islamabad on 21 October 2026.
Will flour get cheaper because of this meeting?
We cannot say. The release sets no price and no date for any supply. Flour was still rising in the last weekly figures we read.
Is wheat import a federal or provincial matter?
Both are involved. The committee included federal ministries and provincial officials, and the release asked both to coordinate. Local price control is a provincial job.
How much wheat does Pakistan hold in reserve?
The release gives no figure. We have not found an official reserve number published for October 2026.
Where can I read the release?
On the Press Information Department site at pid.gov.pk, under the releases of 21 October 2026.
How we verified this
What we checked, where we read it, and what we could not confirm.
Last checked 22 October 2026. We read the Press Information Department release on the wheat import committee and its list of releases on 22 October 2026. Price numbers come from our earlier reports of PBS figures, not from a fresh PBS reading today. We did not read any food ministry notification, and found none that sets an import quantity or price.
About the author
Public Services and Education Journalist
Fajr Riaz is a journalist and content writer at Pakistan Era, based in Lahore. She covers the questions people meet in everyday life in Pakistan: how a public service works, what a change in the rules means, and where to find a reliable answer.
