Nothing but loss

Wholesale kitchen markets in these districts are getting very few buyers, forcing vegetable farmers to sell their produce at low prices.

At Satmail Bazar in Jashore, one of the largest wholesale vegetable markets in the country, buyers and sellers gather each Sunday and Thursday for trading. Vegetable traders from across the country come here and buy vegetables in bulk to sell in their respective districts.

"I cultivated pointed gourd in around 15 kathas of land. Now, I am selling these for only Tk 28 per kg," said Robiul Islam Robi, a vegetable farmer at Natuapara area under Jashore Sadar upazila.

"I cultivated white radish, which we usually sell at Tk 35 per kg. This year, I am having to sell it at Tk 18," said Ahad Miah, a farmer from Bijoynagar Churamonkathi.

"We farmers are incurring huge losses this year. We are selling vegetables at such low prices that all our capital will be exhausted this year," said Mohor Ali, a vegetable farmer from the area.

Jashore farmers produced around eight lakh tonnes of vegetables each year by cultivating some 32,000 hectares of land in the district, said Emdad Hossain, district officer of the Department of Agricultural Extension (DAE) in Jashore.

In Bogura, one of the highest vegetable-producing districts, farmers are also bearing the brunt of the virus outbreak and shutdown as prices have reduced by more than half due to the lack of buyers.

Bogura farmers cultivated vegetables on 12,810 hectares of land in the winter season and 41,500 hectares of land in the summer season, according to the district's DAE office.

"I cultivated hybrid tomato in one bigha of land, investing Tk 1 lakh. But the price of tomato is so low that I have to incur a loss of over Tk 50,000," said 40-year-old Moksedul Islam, a vegetable farmer from Birkulla village in Shajahanpur upazila.

Abdul Mannan Pramanik, 50, a farmer of the same village, cultivated coriander on 10 decimals of land. "Before the coronavirus outbreak, coriander leaf could be sold at Tk 5,000 per maund. Now, I am having to sell it at Tk 400 per maund," he said.

"I spent Tk 35,000 to cultivate cucumber in one bigha of land. But now, I will get only Tk 9,000 after selling these cucumbers," said 56-year-old Abdul Khaja Mia, a farmer from Milkipur village in Shibganj upazila.

"We usually send at least 150 trucks loaded with vegetables to the capital daily. But now, we send only 50 to 70 trucks," said Md Babu Mia, president of the Mahasthan Vegetable Samity.

Contacted, Abul Kashem Azad, deputy director of the Bogura DAE, said vegetable farmers in the district will not be getting any incentives as compensation.

Photo: Palash Khan

On Thursday morning at the district's largest wholesale vegetable market, in Gobindanagar in Thakurgaon municipality, 55-year-old farmer Mozaffar Hossain was frustrated about the lack of buyers after selling his produce at a nominal price.

Mozaffar, from Kaharpara village in Thakurgaon Sadar upazila, said he had brought a total of 21 sacks (each sack containing 60 kg) of cucumber. He managed to sell only seven sacks of his produce at a nominal price of Tk 2.5 per kg, having to leave the rest in a wholesaler's custody in the market.

This has been a dismal month so far for Mozaffar. On April 1, he brought six sacks of cucumber but was unable to sell any that day. The following day, he was able to sell at a price of Tk 2 per kg only. 

This season, he had cultivated cucumber on 3.5 acres of land spending around Tk 2.2 lakh, with hopes of a handsome profit. Observing the current state of the vegetable market, he has lost hope of recovering his production costs. 

Md Rafiqul Islam, from Yakubpur village in Thakurgaon Sadar upazila, said he cultivated bottle guard on one bigha of land. Where he sold per piece at Tk 14-15 earlier, bottle guard prices have now dropped to Tk 4-5 per piece.   

"How will I cover my production costs? The shutdown ruined any hope of getting a good profit," he said.

At the market on Thursday, tomato was being sold at Tk 3-4 per kg, brinjal at Tk 2-4 per kg, large bottle gourd at Tk 4-5 per piece, pumpkin at Tk 4-5 per kg, and green chili at Tk 8-10 per kg.