The Iranian government has raised customs duty on Pakistani kinnow and is no longer renewing import permits, local media has reported.
According to areportby Dawn.com, exports of the fruit to Iran are no longer viable.
“It is an indirect ban on import of kinnow from Pakistan,” a source in the commerce ministry told the news service.“There is demand in Iran for Pakistani kinnow and the change in policy would encourage illegal border trade between the two countries.”
All Pakistan Fruits and Vegetables Exporters and Importers Merchants Association senior-vice chairman Chaudhary Nisar Amjad told the news service exporters were facing a number of obstacles in exporting fruit through official channels.
He said last year Pakistan exported between 70,000 - 80,000 tonnes of kinnow to Iran, but the current customs duty had stemmed the flow of fruit through official channels to a trickle.
Revenue was being lost in both countries, he added, with increased quantities of the fruit being smuggled across the border.
