Cassava gives a fresh boost to farming
Cassava, a tuber native to South America, could be the next big thing in changing farmers' lives by adding to their incomes in an anxiety-free way.
Thousands of farmers in Tangail, Mymensingh, Comilla, Habiganj and Khagrachhari districts are enthusiastically farming the woody shrub, locally known as Shimul potato, to boost their incomes under a special scheme by Pran, a food processor and agribusiness company.
Khokon Miah, a farmer from Fulbaria in Mymensingh, said he grew cassava, an easy-to-grow crop, on three acres of his land, and earned Tk 40,000 in profit from the crop.
“I was struggling to maintain my six-member family. I could not meet my family needs despite having sufficient land. Now I can earn more,” he said.
Khokon said cassava cultivation is cheaper and more profitable. “It requires very little irrigation and small amounts of fertilisers and insecticides. It is also less affected by natural calamities."
He was among the 9,000 beneficiaries of a contract-farming programme by Pran, which supplied free seeds, training, technical and monetary support to farmers, with financial assistance from the Asian Development Bank (ADB).
The Manila-based lender gave some $12.5 million to Pran to boost cassava farming in Bangladesh.
Pran is trying to encourage local farmers to grow cassava, leading to 1,271 acres of cassava cultivation in the hilly lands in 2014.
In 2014 and 2015, the company purchased 40,000 tonnes of cassava from farmers directly.
According to farmers and agriculturists, the weather and soil in the hilly areas are particularly suitable for cassava cultivation.
Cassava allows farmers to utilise fallow or less fertile lands, like in the hilly areas, for cultivation, leading to a greater income opportunity, said Kamruzzaman Kamal, director of marketing at Pran-RFL Group.
Pran took the initiative to change livelihoods and generate employment opportunities for marginal farmers, especially in the hilly areas, and has been working to help farmers improve agricultural practices and develop their communities, he said.
Farmers said that the crop is gaining popularity as it led to an assured income, as they did not face losses even amid natural calamities.
“I feel no anxiety over growing cassava as there is no chance of incurring losses,” said Abdul Khalek, a farmer from Madhupur in Tangail.
Pran offers a 100 percent buy-back guarantee, which is attractive to the farmers, said Mahtab Uddin, chief operating officer of Pran Agro Business Ltd.
Farmers also get Tk 17,000 in loans, which is interest-free, for every acre of cassava cultivation, he said.
Pran initiated cassava farming to produce starch and glucose, a raw material for textile, pharmaceuticals and processed food industries, Kamal said.
The company has also set up a large plant in the northeastern district of Habiganj. The plant can produce 135 tonnes of liquid glucose and 120 tonnes of starch a day. But it is running below the production capacity as it does not have enough supply of cassava.
Bangladesh currently depends on imports of starch and glucose, meaning the local production from cassava will help save a chunk of foreign currency.
“We see a big future for cassava in the country,” Kamal said.
Pran has targeted to expand cassava cultivation to 10,000 acres by next year, said Mahtab.
The company is also working to expand cassava farming by collaborating with the Central Tuber Crops Research Institute, an Indian organisation dedicated to research on tropical tuber crops.
The institute has agreed to provide Pran with seeds for cultivation in Bangladesh.
Pran is also doing its own research on the tuber, at its laboratory in Narsingdi, to develop a variety of the crop that can be harvested twice a year to increase production, Mahtab said.
Cassava is now harvested once a year.
“It has no adverse impact on environment. The green plants help maintain ecological balance in the area,” he said.
He also said byproducts of cassava can be used as compost fertiliser, as it would be completely organic.
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