Moslem Uddin once made a living selling jujube pickles door to door and along roadsides. More than two decades later, he runs a 50-acre jujube orchard in Sakhipur and sells fruit worth around Tk 1 crore in a season.
Uddin, from Kirtankhola village in Ghatail upazila, began his agricultural journey on a small scale around 2000. He bought dried jujubes from local markets, prepared pickles and sold them to households and passers-by.
He later started growing lemons in his homestead before moving into commercial fruit cultivation. In 2012, he leased six acres of land and established a lemon orchard. He subsequently cultivated malta and other fruits before turning to jujube.
He began commercial jujube cultivation in 2014. Over the years, his operation expanded to about 50 acres of leased land in the Kakrajan union area of Sakhipur.
The orchard’s early-season harvest begins reaching the market in August. Around 10–15 workers are employed there regularly, while the workforce rises to 70–80 during the peak harvest period.
Uddin said the orchard supplies around 18–20 baskets of jujubes a day to wholesale markets in Dhaka, including Karwan Bazar and Shyambazar.
Each basket contains about 60kg of fruit. At the beginning of the season, the jujubes sell for Tk 150–160 per kg, putting daily sales at roughly Tk 1.8–2 lakh.
Prices tend to fall as supplies increase during the peak season, but production also rises, Uddin said. Overall, he expects seasonal sales of around Tk 1 crore.
His expenses, including production and other seasonal costs, amount to Tk 70–75 lakh, leaving an expected profit of Tk 20–25 lakh, depending on weather and market prices.
“I started by selling jujube pickles as a street vendor. Later, I cultivated lemon and malta. After moving into jujube cultivation, I began to achieve greater success,” Uddin said.
He currently grows several varieties of jujube trees and cultivates the fruit twice a year.
The fruit is sold both in local markets and to food-processing companies. Uddin said some companies buy jujubes in large quantities to make packaged pickles.
The demand has helped create a market beyond traditional wholesale trading, while the orchard itself has become a source of seasonal employment for people in nearby villages.
Minhaz Uddin, who has worked at the orchard for seven years, said he is responsible for much of its routine maintenance.
“I have been working here for seven years. I take care of the orchard and depend on this income to meet my family’s expenses,” he said.
Another worker, Md Shahin, said the workload increases during the harvest season.
“We have to work long hours when the workload increases. I usually work from morning until afternoon,” he said.
Uddin’s success has encouraged other farmers in the area to take up jujube cultivation.
Local farmer Majum Ahmed said he began growing jujubes about two years ago after seeing Uddin’s orchard. He now has jujube trees on about 150 decimals of land.
“I have invested around Tk 1 lakh and expect to earn Tk 7–8 lakh,” he said.
Uddin believes unemployed young people can also explore jujube cultivation as a source of income.
“Bangladesh’s soil is very suitable for jujube cultivation. With proper care and management, it is possible to succeed in this profession,” he said.
Niyanta Barman, an upazila agriculture officer, said Uddin had achieved success by commercially cultivating a local variety of jujube.
She said the soil in Sakhipur is suitable for a range of fruit crops and that the agriculture department provides farmers with advice and support.
Ashiq Parvez, deputy director of the Tangail Department of Agricultural Extension, said indigenous fruit varieties were gradually disappearing as hybrid and high-yielding varieties became more popular.
He said local varieties have nutritional value and good quality, and noted that Uddin had collected indigenous jujube varieties from different parts of Bangladesh for cultivation.
Uddin’s journey from selling jujube pickles on the streets to managing a 50-acre orchard has not only transformed his own livelihood but has also created employment opportunities and encouraged other farmers to enter commercial fruit cultivation.
