Incentive fails to reach potato farmers hit by throwaway prices

After failing to shield potato farmers from a price crash last season, the government is now struggling to deliver cash incentives even as harvesting of this year’s early varieties has already begun, raising fresh concerns about policy delays and continued neglect of growers.

The Ministry of Agriculture in early December decided to provide more than Tk 110 crore in cash incentives, in addition to the Tk 150 crore already allocated for subsidies this fiscal year, to potato farmers who incurred losses in the 2024-25 season, according to government documents seen by The Daily Star.

Ministry documents show that the government decided to cancel its earlier plan to procure 50,000 tonnes of potatoes from farmers who incurred losses and instead decided to distribute the subsidy directly among farmers. The move was framed as a measure to protect growers’ interests after prices collapsed last season.

But more than a month and a half later, farmers say they are still waiting for any financial support, despite prices remaining low and cultivation risks persisting this year as well.

The potato season lasts from October to April, with planting usually taking place between October and November, and harvesting from February to April, according to Agriculture Information Service.

Bangladesh produced a historic high of 1.15 crore tonnes of potatoes last season, while domestic demand stands at around 90 lakh tonnes, according to government estimates. The surplus pushed prices down sharply and wiped out farmers’ margins.

Many farmers had to sell their produce at the field level for as low as Tk 11 per kg, well below the Department of Agricultural Extension’s (DAE) estimated average production cost of Tk 14. In some northern regions, where cultivation costs are higher, production expenses reached up to Tk 20 per kg, according to DAE data.

Encouraged by high prices in earlier years, many farmers expanded cultivation, only to fall into debt when prices collapsed last season. With incentives still pending, growers say they are now facing losses for a second consecutive year.

This season, many have grown cautious and reduced cultivation. According to DAE data, potato cultivation area decreased to 4.67 lakh hectares this season from 4.94 lakh hectares in the last season.

Sakiul Islam, a potato farmer from Gobindaganj in Gaibandha, said he cultivated potatoes on 15 bighas last year but lost about Tk 1.5 lakh despite a good harvest, due to extremely low prices.

“This year, I reduced cultivation to nine bighas, but prices are still low. We haven’t received any help from the government yet,” he told The Daily Star.

Rafiqul Islam, a farmer from Mokamtola in Bogura’s Shibganj upazila, said he lost nearly Tk 60,000 last season cultivating potatoes on five bighas, even after storing the crop in cold storage.

“I lost my capital last year. Looking at current prices, there will be no profit this year either. If we keep losing money like this, how will we continue farming?” he said.

A senior official at the Ministry of Agriculture, speaking on condition of anonymity, said data on potato cultivation for the current and previous seasons have already been collected. Farmers who grew potatoes in 2024 and 2025 have been identified and the information will be double-checked before finalising recommendations for incentives based on land size.

He said additional funds would be added to provide cash incentives, but acknowledged that the decision remains at an early stage. The proposal will be placed before the cabinet, and payments will be made only after funds are released and the final list of beneficiaries is approved.

Officials at the field level say the delay is already causing frustration. AKM Sadikul Islam, deputy director of the DAE in Joypurhat, said his office had submitted a list of affected farmers about a month ago but had yet to receive any allocation or official instruction.

DAE Director General Abdur Rahim said the subsidy process was underway, though no specific date had been fixed for disbursement.

Agriculture Secretary Mohammad Emdad Ullah Mian said the government was still considering the modality of providing incentives and that a meeting had been held on the issue.

Further details would be shared once a final decision is taken, he added.

Jahangir Alam Khan, an agricultural economist, said the handling of the potato crisis reflected serious policy and management failures. Delayed decisions, lack of timely implementation and unclear communication around incentives, he said, had deepened farmers’ financial distress.

“Support measures must be timely and clearly communicated, otherwise they lose their effectiveness and only deepen farmers’ vulnerability,” he said.