Farmers reap windfall on early winter crops

FE Report
Farmers in many districts are gaining profits by producing crops ahead of winter season, officials said.
It is now Kharif-2 season when summer vegetables are grown.
Gourd species like sponge, ridge and teasle are major summer vegetables.
Cauliflower, cabbage, bean, tomato, bitter gourd (ustha), radish are major winter (Rabi season) vegetables usually begin arrive the market in October-November period.
"Many farmers in the country are now growing winter crops in summer to get handsome profits", Md Rafiqul Hasan, deputy director at Department of Agriculture Extension (DAE), told the FE.
He said farmers in 15 districts are very busy producing early variety of winter crops.
"Consumers have grown interest in cultivating vegetables, which are rare in the market," he said.
According to the state-run Department of Agriculture Marketing (DAM), bean is being sold at Tk80-100, ustha at Tk60-80 per kg, tomato at Tk100-120, radish at Tk30-35 per kg, and cauliflower at Tk40-50 per peace in the city kitchen markets.
DAE director general Md Abdul Mannan told the FE that it is peak Aman season, the second biggest cropping season in the country and most of the farmers are now busy with their Aman fileds.
"But many of them are growing a few winter vegetables to gain windfall profits", he said.
He said "It is challenging, production is much lower compared with that of the season."
The DAE officials said tomato, bean, radish are being grown in Jessore, Netrokona, Satkhira, Rajshahi, Gazipur, Pabna, Sirajganj, Bogra and Rangpur.
Manikganj, Narshingdi, Jessore and Magura farmers are growing cauliflower, cabbage and bean.
Md Aiub Ali, a farmer at Ghioir in Manikganj district, said he has cultivated cauliflower on two bighas of land (per bigha 33 decimal).
"I'm expecting a Tk 50,000 profit from the field in August-September period," he said.
He said that cauliflowers are now being sold at Tk40-42 per piece in his area, which is sold at Tk10-12 in winter.
He recognized that production of the crop in this off-season is nearly 50 per cent less than normal season.  
"But net profit is much higher compared to that of usual season," he said.   
Md Hafizul Hoque , a farmer at Madhabdi in Narshingdi said bean prices are hovering at Tk50-55 per kg in the wholesale market.
"We are expecting to earn Tk30,000 profit at per bigha of  land," he said.
According to the DAE, the country produces 12.1 million tonnes of vegetables annually, of which winter crops cover 65 per cent.