Exporting fruits and vegetables
Saturday, 10 November 2007
Hasibul Hasan
EXPORTING of fruits and vegetables from Bangladesh can prove to be very gainful activities creating value chains and employment extensively at the grass roots level. Unlike other export oriented industries, the retention of value-added earnings from the export of fruits and vegetables can be one hundred percent or nearly so. This is because unlike the other export-oriented sectors, the import requirement for large scale export of indigenously produced fruits and vegetables would be nothing or negligible.
Bangladesh can earn a lot by exporting fruits and vegetables alone. Thailand with its lesser array of fruits than Bangladesh earns a substantial amount of foreign exchange by exporting fruits and fruit products. Given appropriate policy supports for encouraging the growers of such agri-products, Bangladesh can match Thailand's performance in this field because this country has a bounty of tropical fruits which can be extremely satisfying to foreign customers such as mangoes, pineapples, black berries, bananas, etc. Both in whole forms or in sliced and juiced forms, the fruits and fruit products can fetch huge amounts of foreign currencies for the country.
But the high potentials in this area have been hardly tapped so far. Similar, if not greater potentials exist also for the export of vegetables from Bangladesh. Cumulatively, export of fruits and vegetables directly and in processed forms can lead to multi billion dollars of earnings fairly soon provided operators in this sector are self-guided with a vision and are directed and motivated to these ends also by the government through supportive policies and infrastructural developments.
Leaders of the Bangladesh Fruits, Vegetables and Allied Products Exporters Association (BFVAPEA) have submitted recently a list of demands to the government. The demands of the association are mainly in the area of air freighting. Fast and less costly air freighting of their perishable products are one important factor for expanding their businesses. But they are formidably constrained by lack of air freighting capacities or their high charges.
Some months ago the government waived the ground handling charge of any aircraft carrying fruits and vegetables cargoes. An immediate reaction of this policy decision was seen in some foreign airlines that previously refused to carry such cargoes from Bangladesh, from their agreeing to do so in the light of the new decision. But it is ironical that while foreign airlines have been activated by the government's decision, The authorities of the national airliner are get to fully implement it.
Bangladesh Biman at present has very limited capacities for carrying fruits and vegetables and its charges are also irrationally high. A big boost to vegetable export can take place from the national airliner increasing its carrying capacities and reasonably scaling down is charges. There is no reason why it should not take such measures because freighting these perishable products round the world can turn out to be a lucrative source of business for this airline which is otherwise facing hard times financially.
Business operators in this sector are all for chartering private carrier. But they can only viably materialize these plans after the government decides to reduce charges significantly for such private chartered flights.
Government's supports should be quickly extended in providing training to people already involved in the sector or having the potential to do so. Vegetable and fruits exporting special zones can be encouraged with the government helping out in the matter through providing various services in these zones including cool chain arrangements. Government should also encourage and provide concessions for the development and growth of packaging industries and infrastructure facilities in this sector. A big stimulus can also be provided by streamlining the arrangements for disbursing the money given as export subsidies in this sector and rationalising its present rate.
EXPORTING of fruits and vegetables from Bangladesh can prove to be very gainful activities creating value chains and employment extensively at the grass roots level. Unlike other export oriented industries, the retention of value-added earnings from the export of fruits and vegetables can be one hundred percent or nearly so. This is because unlike the other export-oriented sectors, the import requirement for large scale export of indigenously produced fruits and vegetables would be nothing or negligible.
Bangladesh can earn a lot by exporting fruits and vegetables alone. Thailand with its lesser array of fruits than Bangladesh earns a substantial amount of foreign exchange by exporting fruits and fruit products. Given appropriate policy supports for encouraging the growers of such agri-products, Bangladesh can match Thailand's performance in this field because this country has a bounty of tropical fruits which can be extremely satisfying to foreign customers such as mangoes, pineapples, black berries, bananas, etc. Both in whole forms or in sliced and juiced forms, the fruits and fruit products can fetch huge amounts of foreign currencies for the country.
But the high potentials in this area have been hardly tapped so far. Similar, if not greater potentials exist also for the export of vegetables from Bangladesh. Cumulatively, export of fruits and vegetables directly and in processed forms can lead to multi billion dollars of earnings fairly soon provided operators in this sector are self-guided with a vision and are directed and motivated to these ends also by the government through supportive policies and infrastructural developments.
Leaders of the Bangladesh Fruits, Vegetables and Allied Products Exporters Association (BFVAPEA) have submitted recently a list of demands to the government. The demands of the association are mainly in the area of air freighting. Fast and less costly air freighting of their perishable products are one important factor for expanding their businesses. But they are formidably constrained by lack of air freighting capacities or their high charges.
Some months ago the government waived the ground handling charge of any aircraft carrying fruits and vegetables cargoes. An immediate reaction of this policy decision was seen in some foreign airlines that previously refused to carry such cargoes from Bangladesh, from their agreeing to do so in the light of the new decision. But it is ironical that while foreign airlines have been activated by the government's decision, The authorities of the national airliner are get to fully implement it.
Bangladesh Biman at present has very limited capacities for carrying fruits and vegetables and its charges are also irrationally high. A big boost to vegetable export can take place from the national airliner increasing its carrying capacities and reasonably scaling down is charges. There is no reason why it should not take such measures because freighting these perishable products round the world can turn out to be a lucrative source of business for this airline which is otherwise facing hard times financially.
Business operators in this sector are all for chartering private carrier. But they can only viably materialize these plans after the government decides to reduce charges significantly for such private chartered flights.
Government's supports should be quickly extended in providing training to people already involved in the sector or having the potential to do so. Vegetable and fruits exporting special zones can be encouraged with the government helping out in the matter through providing various services in these zones including cool chain arrangements. Government should also encourage and provide concessions for the development and growth of packaging industries and infrastructure facilities in this sector. A big stimulus can also be provided by streamlining the arrangements for disbursing the money given as export subsidies in this sector and rationalising its present rate.