ISLAMABAD: The Pakistan Polypropylene Woven Sack Manufacturers Association (PPWSMA) has raised serious concerns over the continued use of substandard and non-food-grade sacks for wheat flour packaging, leading to an estimated loss of Rs594 billion in seven years due to product wastage and contamination.

In a letter to the Ministry of Food Security, PPWSMA has added that wheat flour was the lifeline of millions of Pakistanis who eat daily; therefore, protecting the quality of wheat flour and preventing its wastage in the supply chain was essential.

It has been highlighted that every year, hundreds of thousands of wheat flour bags become unusable or damaged during storage and transportation due to the use of low-quality, non-compliant packaging materials.

`This leads to direct losses of wheat flour falling from the sacks made from recycled material or thin cloth bags, during stacking and transportation, PPWSMA letter has said.

The association has reiterated its demand that the government should immediately enforce SRO 46(I)/2017 across all provinces and ban the use of substandard and non-food-grade sacks for packaging wheat flour.

The Ministry of National Food Security & Research has been asked to promote the adoption of certified polypropylene woven sacks, which meet international food-grade and safety standards.