ISLAMABAD: Pakistan Soap Manufacturers Association (PSMA) has proposed a three point formula for revival of the small soap factories, which have closed down because of the unavailability of the cost effective raw materials.
Zafar Mehmood, Chairman PSMA, while addressing a meeting of the PSMA Management Committee in Lahore on Thursday pointed out that most of the small soap manufacturing factories operating in the SME sector had been closed and the rest were at the verge of closure due to stoppage of import of Tallow from India coupled with the unjustified imposition of 7% Additional Custom Duty (ACD) on Palm Stearin in the last budget.
The meeting observed that by banning the cheaper source of Soap Industry’s raw material and making the other source highly expensive through levy of ACD, the government had thrown the soap out of reach of the poor. Consequently, the small factories, facing a drastic cut in demand, have closed down their operation leaving many workers out of jobs under the current difficult inflationary economy.
Chairman PSMA said that the soap industry was using Tallow as raw material to produce laundry soap, which was being imported from India and after ban on imports from India, the import of Tallow was also banned.
Further, the import of tallow in Pakistan is subject to Halal Certification and there is no other country except India from where halal certified Tallow can be imported, he said adding that Soap is a basic commodity to be used by every citizen of the country, especially laundry soap which is used by Pakistan’s poorest population, has suffered from the substantial increase in cost.
Currently, only big companies who have multiple product lines are surviving and the small to medium sized companies are either closed or are on the verge of Chairman PSMA said and proposed a three-point formula for revival of the small soap industry; first, the government of Pakistan should immediately withdraw ACD on palm stearin; second, allow inedible Tallow for use in soap without the condition of Halal certification and third if possible allow imports of Tallow from India as such relaxation has already been given to the pharmaceutical industry.