Russia has allowed the import of Pakistani potatoes. Does it matter?

Russia has finally lifted the blanket ban on the import of Pakistani potatoes. The restriction had been placed in May 2025 on the grounds that the potatoes being exported from Punjab contained the potato tuber moth and tomato wilt virus. The ban was contested by the Plant Protection Department, which had been in conversations with the Russians for a few months now, agitating for the release of the potatoes and providing evidence in the forms of pest status records and diagnostic reports confirming that the pathogens were no longer there.

Now, according to an official announcement, the ban has been lifted and three potato exporters - Chase International, Zahid Kinnow Grinding & Waxing Plant, and National Fruit – have been permitted to export the tuber to Russia. Access to other exporters is contingent on their meeting the phytosanitary requirements the Russians have set. So, although there is a qualification – that only a few exporters have been allowed to export, it does send a positive signal.

Pakistan had experienced a bumper potato crop this season, with the production estimated to be around 12 million tonnes. Yet of this production, 4 million tonnes – or one-third – was surplus. Given the closing of the Afghan border since the skirmishes, the local farmers were left with all the potatoes to sell, and not a seller to buy them at an appropriate price. Suddenly, a huge chunk of their market had been shut off. And on top of that, the Russians had banned our potatoes too. Together both these destinations had accounted for almost half of our potato exports, so the impact was massive.

In this context, the reopening of the Russian market serves as a positive hope for the millions of potato farmers, who can now believe that perhaps they would be able to sell their potatoes, if not at profit, at least to break even on the costs of the crop. Yet, this recent episode also highlights the need to invest in local quality control, and implement pest and disease control measures at the broadest level possible to protect local exporters from - what it really comes down to - suffering.