Plastic-made tools used in agricultural sector are getting popular in the country for their quality and potential to reduce pre- and post-harvest losses and availability at competitive prices.
This was evident from interviews of the FE correspondent with a number of customers coming from many districts to the 10th International Plastic Fair 2015 being held at the Bangabandhu International Conference Centre in the city.
The use of farm equipment like drum seeder, pesticide spray machine, drip irrigation, AWD (alternate wetting and drying) pipe, hatchery tray and seed bed is on the increase.
According to Bangladesh Plastic Goods Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BPGMEA), the demand of plastic-made agriculture products has been rising by 20 per cent annually.
The FE correspondent also came to know that plastic-made agricultural products like fish and fruit crate, cage culture, hand net, hosepipe, water tray, egg cage, flower tub, milk can and sponge net are being manufactured locally.
"The local manufacturers have been producing global standard quality plastic products which have multiple uses including that in the agricultural sector", president of BPGMEA Jasim Uddin told the FE.
He said almost all plastic-made agricultural products are being manufactured locally; as a result the farmers can easily take the products and use the same for different purposes.
He said earlier the farmers had to count a significant amount of pre- and post-harvest losses but thanks to use of plastic-made agricultural equipment the losses have been minimised.
Managing Director of Bengal Pacific (Pvt) Ltd Shahedul Islam Helal said in recent times the plastic-made agricultural products are widely used in the sector.
He said earlier the farmers had to use equipment made of metals or natural items such as wood, cane, leather and other natural fibres.
He said every year new plastic-made agricultural goods are entering the market. From small containers to complicated tools are being made of plastic.
He said with the use of plastic-made agricultural equipment the farmers can now minimise nearly 10 per cent to 15 per cent pre- and post-cultivation loss.
Manager of BPGMEA pavilion Motabber Rahaman Miru said now most of the cultivators use plastic equipment before and after harvest which helps them to get better quality produce.
Manager of Bengal Polymer Wares Ltd Iqbal Zafar Ahmad said their company has an observation that in Bangladesh around 15 per cent vegetables get wasted every year due to absence of proper packaging.
He said the farmers can save on an average 20 to 30 per cent transport wastage cost for fish, egg, tomato and other agro products by using plastic crates.
The BPGMEA data shows that there is a demand for 7.26 million pieces of gunny sacks worth Tk 150 million; 20 million pieces of plastic sacks worth Tk 800 million and 7 million pieces of bamboo baskets worth Tk 300 million.
shahalamnur@gmail.com
Plastic-made equipment used in agri sector getting popular
Shah Alam Nur | Published: January 30, 2015 00:00:00 | Updated: November 30, 2024 06:01:00
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