Lifting potato growers out of their plight

The country this season has witnessed a bumper production of potatoes in almost all the potato-growing districts. But the growers have fallen into a state of despondency. Though potato has not yet been harvested fully, the growers have become disappointed by extremely low and falling prices in the market. Some of the potato growers anticipated good production in the field and better prices in the market. That was why they cultivated the crop by selling their entire paddy to buy potato seeds, necessary fertilisers and other inputs. But their hopes were dashed to the ground by the harsh realities. This year the production cost of potato per kilogram ranged from Tk.6 to Tk.7 excluding the cost of labour and rent of the land. But the present selling price at the farmers' level is between Tk.3 to Tk.4 per kilogram. But consumers have to buy the commodity at prices ranging from Tk.10 to Tk.15 per kilogram in different markets of the country. The difference is being eaten up by the middle men.   
The plight of potato growers has been attributed to a number of factors. There are not sufficient cold storage facilities in the country to preserve potatoes throughout the year. Side by side, the potatoes stored in 2013 could not be marketed in time because of continued shutdowns and blockades. As a result, there is still 1.0 to 1.5 million tons of old potatoes lying in the cold storages. Added to these are new potatoes of the current season. So the prices of potatoes are continually falling because of increased supply of the commodity in the market.
Faulty marketing system, insufficient storage facilities and lack of potato processing industries are led the growers to lose heavily in spite of bumper production. Some of the potato growers from Bogra district came to Dhaka with the hope of selling their produce at higher prices. But they are now frustrated in Dhaka wholesale market also since they don't get reasonable price even here. The prices of all agricultural inputs such as seeds, pesticides and fertilisers were very high. Under these circumstances if they don't get even the cost prices of potato, then what is the use of cultivating it? So they will cultivate less potato next year and more in the year after. Growers will continue to face the same kind of frustrations until sufficient measures are taken to preserve the commodity in the harvesting season.
Bangladesh has experienced such a situation in the past. In the 2010-2011 season, the target of potato production was not fulfilled in the south-western region of the country. Because the cultivators had decreased production of the crop since they suffered loss in the previous year. The consequences of such operations of the Cob-Web theorem in Bangladesh farm products can be well managed by suitable and timely measures.
The Agricultural Extension Directorate says, potato plants have been attacked by a kind of fungus infections like Phytophthora infestans and late blight disease resulting from recurrent fogs. Adulterated fertilisers and fibrous roots and other forms of diseases in the potato growing districts have also affected the plants. But these will not affect the bumper production of potatoes there.
The current year's target of potato cultivation area was 40 thousand hectares. But ultimately it has surpassed the limit of 44 thousand hectares. Consequently, it is expected that the potato production target of 8.7 million tons will surpass 9 million tons.  
The Bangladesh Cold Storage Association (BCSA) sources say there are at present 370 cold storages in the country to accommodate 4.5 million to 4.6 million tons of potatoes i.e. less than half of the targets of production. Last year, 4.5 million tons of potatoes were stored but could not be cleared because of the continued shutdowns and blockades in the later part of the year 2013. Still 1.0 to 1.5 million tons of potatoes are lying unsold in cold storages.
On the other hand, potatoes of the new season will start arriving at the cold storages from March 2014. But the farmers are reluctant to take back their old potatoes from the cold storages since the prices have now fallen drastically. On the other hand, cold storage owners are even unable to collect their rent money by selling these potatoes. So the cold storage owners are in trouble in one hand and the potato growers are not getting due price for their new potatoes on the other.  
The concerned quarter alleges, though there were commitments of the government's plans for potato cultivation, steps for its preservation and fair potato price to the growers were neither announced nor implemented. Though the Ministry of Commerce in 2010 promised steps to promote agro-based processing industry but nothing is there to redeem the pledge.
It is now necessary to explore the possibility of exporting potatoes abroad in time in the face of backlog of the past year's production and the internal crisis of potato storages facilities. In 2010, there was bumper production of potatoes in various parts of the country and the peasants were compelled to sell those to the farias in the field at prices much below their production costs in the absence of lack of storage facilities. The government had even permitted for the first time import of potatoes from India. Moreover, huge quantity of potatoes was entering the country through border areas in Chuadanga from the neighbouring country.  Such mistakes should not be repeated.
In 2010, $3.5 million were earned from potato exports. Potatoes are exported to Malaysia, Sri Lanka, Singapore and Brunei. Moreover, potatoes are in great demand in different countries of the Middle East and Europe. Apart from this, at home potatoes may be given to the poor people through the VGF programme and this will help both the poor and the growers.
Many potato growers stockpile their produce in the field without taking them to the market and sell it there by calling in middlemen there. In this case, most of the growers are compelled to sell the commodity in credit. Such bitter experiences have led many of the farmers to decide not to cultivate potato in future. Besides, those, who already cultivated potato at the end of the season, have given up efforts to nurse the potato field out of frustration.
It is time to go for potato processing industry. The Palli Karmo Songsthan Foundation (PKSF) claims they are encouraging such efforts. The government has to play a pivotal role in this regard. It may help this sector by giving tax holidays to the prospective potato processing industrialists and by building necessary infrastructural facilities including other sorts of necessary assistance. The government may also induce more private sector initiatives to establish potato processing industries to produce commodities for both domestic and foreign markets along with exporting raw potatoes. Side by side, the growers will have to be conscious so that they may get fair prices for their produce by being organised. To this end, the government may provide the growers with loans on easy terms so that they can preserve the commodity and need not be in a hurry in selling it at whatever price they get as in the present situation.
The writer is a retired Professor of Economics, BCS General                       Education Cadre.                                       [email protected]