Oilseed Import Pakistan — Soybean, Canola, Sunflower, and Sesame Seed Trade Data

Pakistan's oilseed trade operates on two distinct regulatory and logistical tracks: bulk grain imports for crushing, and seed-for-planting imports that follow the full PARC–FSC&RD–DPP approval chain. At the same time, sesame seed has emerged as Pakistan's most successful oilseed export, running in the opposite direction to China. This post maps all four commodities — soybean, canola, sunflower, and sesame — across import volumes, policy, regulatory pathways, and trade data, so an importer or exporter can see exactly where each fits in Pakistan's USD 5 billion edible oil equation.

The two-track oilseed import system

Pakistan's oilseed imports are best understood not as one category but as two separate streams, each with its own regulatory body, documentation chain, and cargo type.

The grain-for-crushing track handles orders of magnitude more tonnage — over a million tons per commodity per year — but moves through a simpler regulatory gate: the NBC GMO import license, plus the standard DPP quarantine chain. The seed-for-planting track handles far smaller volumes but requires approval from three separate agencies before a single bag clears customs. Our seed import permit guide walks through the DPP Form-I chain that both tracks share at the quarantine step, and our GM soybean and canola import rules detail the NBC license layer that the grain track adds on top.

Soybean grain imports: volume, policy, and the post-ban recovery

Pakistan imported 1.97 million tons of soybean grain in the 2024/25 marketing year, and the USDA forecasts a rise to 2.4 million tons in 2025/26. The recovery from the October 2022 ban has been steady: after the DPP authorized GE soybean import applications in October 2024, the first shipment — 65,000 tons of US soybean — arrived at Port Qasim on 18 February 2025, with roughly 200,000 more tons following shortly after.

The regulatory foundation changed in June 2026, when the federal cabinet approved the Agricultural Biotechnology Policy and removed the January 2027 sunset clause. That clause would have terminated all GMO import licenses at the end of 2026; its removal means the 39 companies currently holding NBC GMO import licenses can continue importing GM soybean and canola grain indefinitely, subject to license renewal.

For a feed mill or poultry operation sourcing soybean meal rather than whole grain, the import path differs. Our soybean meal import guide covers that parallel commodity chain, which moves through different HS codes and different documentation than grain.

Canola grain imports: crushing economics and Port Qasim discharge

Canola imports follow the same NBC-licensed path as soybean grain but add a yield-driven economic logic. Imported canola yields approximately 42% oil, while local rapeseed yields only around 33%, and conventional local varieties can carry 30 to 50% erucic acid in the oil plus high glucosinolate levels in the meal. The yield gap alone represents roughly USD 172 less value per ton, about 20% lower, for local rapeseed compared with imported canola, which is why crushers keep sourcing from Canada, Australia, and European origins.

Bulk canola vessels discharge at Port Qasim's Fauji Akbar Portia (FAP) terminal, which has handled single vessels of around 55,000 tons and set a single-day discharge record of 16,500 tons of canola oilseed. Solvent extraction plants in the Port Qasim vicinity run capacities of 250 to 500 tonnes per day, and their proximity to the terminal is deliberate: bulk cargo does not move container by container, and the entire vessel lot clears against shore-scale weighment and draft survey. Our canola oilseed crushing guide explains the crushing economics and port clearance chain in detail.

Sunflower seed imports: the planting-seed track from Turkey

Sunflower seed follows the planting-seed regulatory track, not the grain-for-crushing track. Pakistan cultivates approximately 250,000 hectares of sunflower, concentrated in Sindh — particularly Badin, Thatta, and Hyderabad — and in southern Punjab. The seed that feeds this acreage is imported hybrid seed, primarily from Turkey, China, and European breeders, each offering different price and agronomic trade-offs.

The approval chain is the same three-body system that governs all hybrid seed imports: PARC Variety Evaluation Committee approval for the specific hybrid, FSC&RD variety enlistment for legal sale and distribution, and the DPP Form-I import permit through the Pakistan Single Window. Our sunflower seed import guide maps the full path, and our guide to importing seeds from Turkey covers the Turkey-specific supply chain and documentation requirements that apply to sunflower and other hybrid seed from Turkish breeders.

Sunflower's policy significance comes from the edible oil import bill. At roughly USD 5 billion a year and with over 88% of edible oil imported, domestic oilseed expansion — sunflower, canola, and olive — is a recurring national policy priority. Our Pakistan seed import statistics post puts these import volumes in the wider context of Pakistan's agricultural trade for 2026.

Sesame seed: the export that runs the other way

Sesame seed is the anomaly in Pakistan's oilseed trade because it runs in the opposite direction: Pakistan exports sesame to China, and the growth rate is among the fastest of any agricultural commodity.

Pakistan exported USD 68.56 million of sesame seed to China in the January to September 2025 period, up 87% year on year, on volume of 55.61 million kilograms, up 132% from 23.95 million kilograms in the same period of 2024. The average price per kilogram fell from USD 1.52 to 1.23 as volume expanded, but total value still climbed because the volume increase outpaced the price drop.

The scale of the opportunity sits in the gap between Pakistan's current export volume and China's total import demand. China imports roughly 1.5 million tons of sesame per year against only about 320,000 tons of domestic production. Pakistan currently holds approximately 19% of China's sesame import value, ranking second after Niger, with 177 Pakistani companies registered under GACC's 18-digit exporter registration system introduced in September 2024.

The trade pattern reflects comparative advantage. Pakistani sesame is high-oil-content — typically 50% or more, meeting the specification Chinese volume buyers expect — and its production cost is competitive with African origins such as Ethiopia, Tanzania, and Nigeria, which collectively still supply more than half of China's imports. The end uses in China — edible oils, snacks, and health products — drive consistent year-round demand rather than seasonal spikes. Our sesame export to China guide covers GACC registration, quality specifications, and the buyer landscape in detail.

Import policy and the edible oil bill

Pakistan imports over 88% of its edible oil and more than 75% of its oilseeds, at an annual cost of approximately USD 5 billion. Oilseed imports more than doubled from 1.67 million tons in 2014-15 to 3.35 million tons in 2018-19, and the trend has not reversed. The Strategic Development Plan targeting 70% edible oil self-sufficiency by 2035 aims for annual domestic production above 4.578 million tons, but government officials have acknowledged that past efforts to raise domestic oilseed output have largely failed to dent import dependence so far.

The policy architecture that shapes the trade includes the June 2026 Agricultural Biotechnology Policy (removing the GMO import sunset clause), the NBC licensing framework for 39 companies, the DPP's plant-quarantine chain for all seed imports regardless of track, the FSC&RD variety enlistment requirement for seed sold commercially, and the GACC registration system for exporters shipping to China. An importer or exporter moving any of the four commodities covered in this post — soybean, canola, sunflower, or sesame — will encounter at least two of these regulatory bodies before a shipment clears.

What should a trader verify before moving oilseed cargo?

1. Identify which track your commodity falls on: grain-for-crushing under NBC license, or seed-for-planting under PARC–FSC&RD–DPP. The documentation chain, the cargo type, and the port clearance procedure all differ.
2. For GM soybean or canola grain, confirm your company holds a current NBC import license, and match the consignment paperwork — invoice, bill of lading, phytosanitary certificate — to the licensed entity exactly.
3. For sunflower or canola planting seed, confirm the specific hybrid variety holds PARC VEC approval and current FSC&RD enrolment before booking. A variety still in the registration pipeline cannot legally be sold after clearance.
4. For sesame exports to China, confirm your GACC registration is current under the 18-digit format, test oil content at 50% or more and purity at 99% or more before shipment, and document both to avoid buyer-side price-downs.
5. Plan port clearance lead time around the specific terminal: Port Qasim's FAP bulk terminal for soybean and canola grain vessels, versus Karachi Port's container terminals for planting-seed consignments. The two ports, the two cargo types, and the two clearance procedures are not interchangeable. Our guide to importing seeds from the USA covers the US-origin documentation specifics that apply to soybean grain shipments and to US-sourced hybrid seed.

Olympic Agencies has cleared agricultural cargo — oilseed grain, hybrid seed, fertilizer, and agricultural machinery — at Karachi Port and Port Qasim since 1982. We handle the full regulatory chain for oilseed imports and exports: NBC license coordination for GM grain, DPP permit and FSC&RD documentation for planting seed, GACC-aligned export paperwork for sesame, and vessel-level discharge coordination for bulk canola and soybean shipments. See our seed import clearance service, and send your commodity, volume, and origin or destination on WhatsApp for a shipment-specific clearance pathway.

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