potato production: Govt’s claim contradicts mkt realities
Al Mamun Harun Ur Rashid :
Despite Bangladesh’s potential to export potatoes to Russia to earn more foreign currencies to inject the national reserve, the country has yet to make any exports happen since the lifting of the ban last year.
When the government says that there is a surplus of potatoes which can be exported, the ground reality is that the potato demand for the local market is high and the price goes up without any justification.
Though statistically it is said that there are surplus of potato production each year in the country, but the export is not being carried out due to the high local market consumption.
The Bangladesh Agricultural Development Corporation (BADC) has stated that they currently have no plans to export potatoes this year due to the high demand for potatoes in the local market.
In an effort to boost exports, however, BADC has planted 10,000 metric tonnes of the ‘Sunshine’ variety of potatoes in various northern districts, including Bogura and Dinajpur, as this variety is favoured by Russia.
Md Abir Hossain, General Manager of BADC, told the New Nation that the Russian market became accessible again after the lifting of the ban imposed in 2014 due to brown rot disease concerns.
When asked about the lack of potato exports, Md Abir Hossain mentioned that they would consider it once production meets the local demand.
According to Department of Agricultural Extension (DAE) , the annual demand for potatoes in the country is 85-90 lakh tonnes. In the fiscal year 2022-23, the country produced 1.12 core tonnes of potatoes.
In the fiscal year 2020-21, potato production in the country amounted to 9.9 million tonnes, with export sales reaching 68,773 tonnes, while in the fiscal year 2021-22, production increased to 10.2 million tonnes, with export sales totaling 78,910 tonnes.
However, despite high production levels compared to demand, the Cold Storage Association has expressed concerns over the decrease in potato production, alleging that the government is not prioritising this issue.
Mustafa Azad Chowdhury, president of the Cold Storage Association, said that although the government has mentioned producing more than one crore tonnes of potatoes in the FY 2022-23, in reality, more than 80-85 lakh tonnes of potatoes have not been produced.
Various sources from BADC and the DAE have anonymously shared their doubts about the accuracy of official potato production figures, suggesting that inflated data may be hiding supply shortages.
BADC sources said when the businessmen get more prices in the local market; they don’t feel like exporting potatoes.
When the government allows opening Letter of Credits (LCs), it indicates there is shortage of potato supply in the market.
Various sources of BADC and DAE preferring anonymity said that the actual figure of potato production is not revealed, rather the figure is inflated to show high production as a sign of the government’s achievement.
When the supply is reduced in the market, the prices jump up and the ordinary people suffer the worst, they said.
Meanwhile, Yusuf Ali, deputy assistant officer at the plant contamination control center at Hili land port, highlighted the government’s recent decision to allow imports from India through the Hili land port as a measure to stabilise prices.
“Potatoes are being sold for Tk40-45 per kg at the retail level, which is abnormally high for this time of year.
Considering the current situation, the government decided to allow imports to gain some control over the price ahead of Ramadan,” he explained.
He mentioned that potato prices have risen significantly, prompting the government to intervene to alleviate pressure on consumers.
Former Agriculture Minister Abdur Razzaque last year stated that there was an excess production of over one crore tonnes of potatoes annually.
“Our domestic demand is 80 lakh tonnes per year, so there is an opportunity to export the remaining 20 lakh tonnes,” he said.
However, despite claims of a surplus for export, the reality on the ground is that the demand for potatoes in the local market remains high, leading to unjustified price hikes.