The date-tree farmers, locally known as gachhis at Bagha upazila in the district are passing busy times in collecting date-juice and processing molasses in the winter months.
According to sources, the upazila is famous for gurh (date-molasses). The season of winter is going on in full swing with the trade of date-molasses.
An estimated shows Tk8 crore is earned from this sector in each winter here.
The farmers collect the juice accumulated in the clay pot over the night. They evaporate the juice by heating next morning to make solid (Patali gurh) or thick-slurry (Jhola gurh).
According to the upazila agriculture office, the farmers of the upazila send molasses to different areas of the country including the capital every year.
If they can expand the business, they would achieve huge profit and change their socio-economic conditions, the agriculture office sources said.
About 25,000 farmer families under seven union parishads and two municipalities live in the upazila where every family has at least three date trees, the sources added.
There are about 1.5 lakh date trees in around 3,000 orchards and beside roads and railway tracks, and on free lands and homesteads, and date-molasses are produced commercially here, the sources maintained.
One farmer can produce 20 to 25 kg of molasses from a single date-tree in a season. As there is no need of extra care for the trees, so it may be a very profitable business.
But, some dishonest traders are doing brisk business by making molasses using sugar which is very harmful for human body. The administration should take necessary legal steps against the dishonest traders and their illegal venture, farmers said.
Abdul Baten, a molasses trader of Borokhadia area in the upazila, said the molasses of Bagha upazila was famous throughout the country.
Saimuddin, a farmer of Amodpur village in the upazila said, “I have appointed two farmers to collect juice from my 150 date trees and process molasses. From a single day’s sale, I earn around Tk 3,000.”
Habibur Rahman, an officer of the upazila agriculture office, said the date trees had been planted on two kilo meter land beside the upazila road this season.
He however, hoped that the business will play a vital role to change the socio-economic picture of the whole region if everybody comes forward to plant the trees in fellow land.
Assistant officer of the agriculture office said:”According to agriculture office, the farmers here earn over Tk 2.25 crore from this sector every year, but as per the information of private organisations over Tk 8 crore is earned from the sector at the same time. In this connection, we are suggesting farmers to further expand the trade.”