Ginger production falling gradually

Ginger production in the country has been coming down gradually while import cost for the spice item soared to nearly Tk 4.8 billion in the last financial year (FY), officials said.
Experts said price debacle during harvest, increasing cost of inputs and lack of government initiatives are forcing farmers to shift away from ginger cultivation.
"The country produced 74380 tonnes of ginger on 9120 hectares in FY'11 which has come down to 69508 tonnes at 8900 hectares in FY'13," Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics (BBS) Agriculture Wing deputy director Bidhan Baral told the FE.
He said, "The bureau has finalised the data recently which showed production of the produce has been reducing gradually. Output was 72084 tonnes in FY'12 on 8407 hectares of land."
"Ginger lands are reducing as farmers are shifting to other crops," he said.
The country's annual demand for ginger is now nearly 0.15 million tonnes of which only 0.07 million tonnes are met from domestic sources, according to the Directorate General of Food (DGoF).
According to the data available from Bangladesh Bank (BB) and Trading Corporation of Bangladesh (TCB) import of ginger soared to around 80000 tonnes costing Tk4.8 billion in FY'13.
However, import was 53,000 tonnes worth Tk2.65 billion in FY'10, BB data showed.
Bangladesh imports ginger mainly from China and Nepal, the second and third largest ginger producers in the world.
Agriculture expert Dr M A Sobhan told the FE that Bangladesh's main ginger growing districts were Nilphamari, Rangpur, Dinajpur, Khagrachari, Mymensingh and Rangamati.
"Nilphamari once produced 60 per cent of the total demand as more than 5000 hectares land was under ginger cultivation there. The acreage has now reduced to only 1000 hectares only," he said.
The price of the produce is now very high but it was not the same a decade ago.
"Years of price deprivation forced farmers to shift to other crops," he said.
"Ginger takes at least six months to give yield. Farmers can get two crops now during the period which is also responsible for the reduction in ginger acreage," he pointed out.
"Providing necessary incentives, starting farmers-friendly marketing policy, making loans easy for the peasantry etc can boost ginger farming which will help the country cut import costs," he said.
Ginger production is also gradually shifting to the hilly areas of the country from the plains.
According to the Department of Agriculture Extension, Rangamati district is now the top ginger producer with 1457 hectares of land while Nilphamari was second with 1052 hectares of lands for ginger.
Ginger price is now hovering between Tk100-110 (local) per kg and Tk130-140 per kg (imported) in the retail markets.
Bangladesh is now seventh largest ginger producer and third largest consumer of the produce, according to FAO.