Haribhanga farmers eye better prices as Covid curbs go

The harvesting of Haribhanga, a variety of mango native to north-western districts such as Rangpur, will begin in the once Monga-stricken region on June 20, according to officials of the local administration.

Monga is a Bengali term referring to a yearly cyclical phenomenon of poverty and hunger that took place twice a year, from March to April and September to November.

Haribhanga mangos, popular for their fibreless flesh, small seeds and unique sweetness, are usually harvested for about two months late in the season.

But as the harvesting date has been set a couple weeks ahead this time, farmers and traders have been passing busy days to ensure maximum output.

Other than Rangpur, Haribhanga mangos are grown on small areas of land in adjacent districts such as Dinajpur, Lalmonirhat, Nilphamari, Kurigram and Gaibandha for their high demand.

According to the Department of Agricultural Extension (DAE) in Rangpur, Haribhanga mangos have been cultivated on 1,887 hectares of land in the district with an expected production of around 43,000 tonnes.

A number of DAE officials and farmers said the suitable climate and soil conditions in Rangpur make it conducive for growing this variety of the fruit.

As such, Haribhanga are grown everywhere in Rangpur but about half of the total production comes from the Mithapukur and Badarganj upazilas, they added.

Farmers said that despite getting optimum yields in the last two seasons, growers and traders could not fetch good profits as they were unable to transport the fruit amid the lockdowns imposed to curb the spread of Covid-19.

So, traders were forced to sell Haribhanga mangos at dirt-cheap prices in 2020 and 2021, when a kilogramme of the fruit was available for Tk 40-60 depending on quality, taste and size.

However, farmers are eyeing better prices this season as the coronavirus situation is now practically gone.

Still though, total output may fall by about 20-30 per cent this year compared to the two previous seasons due to bad climate conditions, namely fluctuating temperatures during the budding season and untimely rainfall between March and April.

Rangpur's economy was previously in a poor state with persisting famines being a never-ending problem for poverty-stricken families in the region, especially those in the Gangachara and Kaunia upazilas.

Various initiatives in the private sector and implementation of state-run projects helped alleviate the situation with the crafting of Benarasi and Shataranji clothing items being the most effective initiatives as these two industries created ample employment opportunities.

Now though, Haribhanga has emerged as the most effective cash crop in the district as those who previously failed to earn an adequate living from other crops have become wealthy by farming the fruit.

Spurred on by seeing other's success, around 5,000 Haribhanga orchards have sprouted across Rangpur over the years.

Rawshan Ali, who owns an orchard in Khoragachh village under Mithapukur upazila, said farmers were pleased to see their trees flowering early this year but their happiness soon turned to frustration as bad climate began affecting production.

"The situation is now stable though and growers are expecting good yields and better prices after suffering two years of losses due to Covid-19," he added.

Ranga Mia, another farmer of the same village, said their profits depend on the current market.

"So, we are hoping to make better profits despite the production shortfall," added Ranga, who leases a mango orchard with 54 trees for Tk 4.2 lakh per year.

The start of the harvesting season also gives rise to a number of other employment opportunities for locals.

For example, the demand of bamboo baskets usually increases manifold this time of year as they are used to pack and transport the mangos.

Many locals can be seen passing busy days crafting these baskets for sale at a wholesale market in Padaganj Bazar under Badarganj upazila.

After facing problems with transportation for the past two years, the farmers demanded the local administration make special arrangements to facilitate the shipping of Haribhanga mangos to other parts of the country. This includes repairing roads and setting up rest-stops as well as ensuring access to banking facilities.

Md Asib Ahsan, the deputy commissioner of Rangpur, was present at a recent meeting held in Padaganj Bazar, where he said an app would be launched on June 20 to ease the marketing process for farmers and traders.

Obaidur Rahman, deputy director of the DAE office in Rangpur, said that each hectare of the total land cultivated will produce around 18 tonnes of the fruit this year, providing farmers and traders with the scope to do business of Tk 200 crore.