Jute farmers in Faridpur are expecting a good harvest this season, thanks to favourable weather and adequate water during the retting period, but rising production costs have left them worried about getting fair prices.
Faridpur is one of Bangladesh’s major jute-producing districts. This year, jute was cultivated on around 87,400 hectares of land, slightly above the target of 87,328 hectares set by the Department of Agricultural Extension (DAE).
The DAE expects the district to produce around 196,000 tonnes of jute this season.
Farmers and traders said jute is currently selling for Tk 4,000 to Tk 4,200 per maund, depending on its variety and quality, at markets including Kanaipur, Naler Mor, Talma, Kadiradi, Satair and Barga.
At the current market rate, the total value of this season’s jute production in the district could exceed Tk 2,000 crore, according to the agriculture department.
Shahduzzaman, deputy director of the DAE in Faridpur, said weather conditions had been favourable throughout the season.
“The weather was quite favourable for jute production this year. Adequate water in canals and wetlands during the retting period helped ensure good colour and quality of the fibre,” he said.
He said the department expected around 196,000 tonnes of jute to be produced in the district this season.
Despite the good yield and quality, however, farmers said their production costs had increased significantly due to higher prices of fertiliser, seeds, labour and other agricultural inputs.
Saiful Islam, Nasir Hossain and Anwar Hossain, among several jute growers in Saltha, said they needed at least Tk 4,000 per maund to cover their costs.
The yield has been good, but the cost of fertiliser, seeds, labour and other inputs has gone up. Unless we get more than Tk 4,000 per maund, we will not make a profit. There is even a risk of losses, they said.
The farmers urged the authorities to take steps to ensure a fair price for jute in line with production costs and prevailing market conditions.
They said a fair price would encourage farmers to continue cultivating jute and help increase production of the country’s traditional cash crop.