QUETTA: At a dry fruit shop in southwestern Pakistan, mounds of black-and-white striped sunflower seeds lay in large silver containers. The aroma of salted seeds fills the shop as busy customers carefully examine the winter delicacy before buying it.
In Pakistan’s southwestern Balochistan province, sunflower seeds are a popular snack when the biting cold settles in. Typically eaten between November to March, some savor them with green tea while others see the sunflower seeds as the perfect winter snack to munch on to pass the time.
Production, however, has declined in recent years due to water scarcity, with Pakistan’s Meteorological Department last month placing 12 Balochistan districts under drought watch.
Muhammad Arif Baloch, a farmer in Balochistan’s Nushki district located alongside the border with Afghanistan, said his family has been harvesting sunflower seeds for the past five years. He now calls it a “low-profit” fruit.
“Last year, 150 tons of sunflower seeds were harvested in Nushki district and exported to other cities of Pakistan,” Baloch told Arab News.
