Farmers supply 65 percent paddy, 70pc vegetables to market

Farmers in Bangladesh sell most of their crops to meet their financial needs after keeping a small portion for their own consumption. On an average, growers supply about 65 per cent of paddy, 70 percent of vegetables, and 81 percent of pulses to the market after harvest. The Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics (BBS) has dug out the information that gives an idea about the supply scenario, which helps the government devise steps to keep the market stable and plan local procurement and imports. The research showed farmers sell the highest 67.88 per cent of high-yielding Boro paddy, followed by 66.78 per cent of high-yielding Aus, and 59.8 percent of high-yielding Aman.
The farmers usually meet their financial needs by selling Boro paddy. Cash crops are grown for the purpose of selling to the market or for exports to make profits, as distinguished from subsistence crops grown as livestock feed or food for families. The findings are useful to know a crop’s production and how much it goes to the market. It also allows us to know about the products that should be imported or exported to stabilise the market. The survey showed production of 11 types of cereals, including paddy and wheat, totalled 5.81 crore tonnes. Of the produce, farmers kept 2.05 crore tonnes, or 35.42 per cent, for their families and sold 3.75 crore tonnes. A total of 1.28 crore tonnes of vegetables were grown in 2017-18. Farmers retained about 38 lakh tonnes, or 30 per cent, and sold about 90 lakh tonnes, or 70 per cent of the total production.
The ratio of marketable surplus for vegetables is higher as growers don’t have the capacity to hold the perishable food for long. High cost of labour stemming from the limited mechanisation, extortion during transport of the produce to cities, and the presence of a number of intermediaries are among the factors responsible for higher vegetable prices. Despite significant labour reduction, agriculture is still a highly labour dense sector which needs mechanisation in the coming days along with crop preservation facilities at every union. The survey is a substantial work that will help take up future development plans for the sector.