By Muhammad Luqman
LAHORE, March 30 (Wealth Pakistan): Agricultural scientists in Punjab are developing and promoting new varieties of durum wheat to meet the rising demand of the rapidly expanding pasta industry, as consumption patterns continue to shift toward processed food products.
The Punjab Agriculture Research Board (PARB) has assigned the Wheat Research Institute Faisalabad to lead research, development and popularisation of durum wheat varieties across the province.
“We have developed several durum wheat varieties alongside bread wheat,” said Dr. Javed Ahmad, Chief Scientist at WRI, while speaking to Wealth Pakistan.
Durum wheat contains high protein and gluten. Because of this, millers use it to produce high-quality flour and semolina. These inputs are essential for pasta products such as noodles, macaroni, spaghetti and vermicelli, which are witnessing growing demand in urban markets.
Historical presence and decline
Dr. Javed said farmers widely cultivated durum wheat in Punjab before the 1960s. It was one of nearly 25 wheat varieties grown in the region at that time.
However, cultivation declined after the introduction of high-yielding bread wheat varieties during the Green Revolution, including MexiPak. These varieties offered better yields, which encouraged farmers to shift away from traditional crops.
New varieties enter the market
WRI Faisalabad developed Wadanak-85 as its first durum wheat variety, followed by Durum-97. Recently, the Punjab Seed Council approved Durum-21 for commercial cultivation, marking another step toward reviving the crop.
Meanwhile, the University of Agriculture Faisalabad has introduced Chenab Pasta-24, a variety designed specifically for the pasta industry. Farmers can grow it in both irrigated and rain-fed areas, which makes it suitable for diverse agro-climatic zones across Punjab.
Dr. Javed said manufacturers traditionally relied on bread wheat for pasta production. However, they are now shifting toward durum wheat due to its superior quality and better processing characteristics.
Processing gap slows expansion
A private industrial group in Multan has established a durum wheat grinding plant. It also purchases the crop from local farmers at premium prices, which has created some incentive for cultivation.
Despite this development, farmers still grow limited quantities of durum wheat in Punjab. The main constraint remains the lack of dedicated processing infrastructure across the province.
“Its success depends on the establishment of more milling units across the province,” Dr. Ahmad said.
Industry calls for specialised facilities
Flour millers say the sector cannot expand without specialised milling systems. Existing infrastructure does not support large-scale processing of durum wheat.
“We need to modify existing milling processes to handle durum wheat. At present, not a single mill in Punjab is processing it,” said Asim Raza Ahmad, former chairman of the Pakistan Flour Mills Association.
He added that most manufacturers of vermicelli, noodles, pasta and spaghetti still rely on maida (fine flour) and suji (semolina) derived from bread wheat.
Marketing issues limit adoption
Farmers also face marketing challenges, which discourage them from adopting the crop on a larger scale.
“Except for the industrial group in Multan, most flour mills do not purchase durum wheat because its flour is not suitable for traditional bread,” said Khalid Mahmood Khokhar, Chairman of the Pakistan Kissan Ittehad.
He said the expansion of durum wheat-based industries is essential to revive the crop. He added that farmers widely cultivated it in Punjab about 60 years ago, but its revival now depends on creating a stable demand chain.