MAGURA, May 07: The common people suffer a lot due to a hike in the prices of soybean oil recently. Some consumers now prefer mustard oil following increase in soybean oil prices.
During the visit to some local shops, this correspondent has found that the consumers who used to buy soybean oil for cooking are interested in mustard oil.
Aparna Sen, who works for a non-governmental organization (NGO) on Syed Atar Ali Road in Magura town, said, "Loose soybean oil is being sold at Tk 180 per litre while bottled soybean at Tk 198 per litre. The price is beyond our reach. Finding no alternative, I am now using mustard oil. Though we purchase mustard oil at Tk 220 per kg, use of mustard oil in cooking is 35-40 per cent less compared to soybean."
Bandana Sikder, a schoolteacher in the Dohar Notun Bazar area, said, "For about a month, I have been using mustard oil instead of soybean. When I cooked with soybean, the demand for edible oil in my family was about 8 kg a month. But now the demand has stood at 5 kg as I am using mustard oil."
Miraj Biswas, a retailer at Puratan Bazar, said, "More than 20 permanent customers are now buying mustard oil from my shop instead of soybean oil. As a result, sale of soybean oil has dropped while sale of mustard oil has increased."
Md Siraj Biswas, an oil mill owner in the Notun Bazar area, said, "Earlier, sale of mustard oil was 34-35kg per day. But it has now jumped to 40-42kg per day. Actually, oil mill owners were struggling for survival. But a recent rise in the demand for mustard oil has raised hope among oil mill owners."
Akhil Sarkar, a mustard grower at Belnagar village under Sadar upazila, said, "Last year, we sold mustard at Tk 2,200 per maund. But at present, mustard is being sold at Tk 4,000 per maund. The increase in the demand for mustard oil is the main reason behind the price hike of mustard. Now I am thinking to expand my mustard cultivation during the coming season."
When contacted, Dr Moniruzzaman, senior scientific officer at regional spice research centre, Magura, said, "At present, the demand for soybean is about 1.1 million (11 lakh) tonnes in our country. But we meet 70 per cent demand by imports. By cultivating high-yielding BARI seed, we can boost our mustard cultivation on a large scale and save a huge amount of foreign currency. Moreover, soybean produces high cholesterol in human body and causes cardiac complication. By using mustard oil, we can avoid such health hazards."
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