Perishable goods exporters urge Biman to introduce cargo flights

Vegetable and fruit exporters have demanded the national flag carrier Biman introduce special cargo flights to reduce fares and increase the quantity of goods transported.

After two months of closure owing to the coronavirus pandemic, a few international airlines started carrying cargoes from the Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport (HSIA) from June 1.

However, the fares have now more than doubled compared to the pre-pandemic time largely because of the space crisis in the flights and the limited number of carriers.

The exporters of perishable goods now pay between $4 and $4.5 for carrying a kilogram of vegetable from the HSIA to London, way higher than $1.5 and $1.7 levied before the pandemic.

"We can hardly make any profit from the vegetable and fruit exports after paying such an exorbitant fare to international cargo airlines," said Paritosh Das Manik, proprietor of Dip International, an exporter.

Manik used to ship nearly 100 tonnes of vegetables and fruits a week before the COVID-19 outbreak. Now he exports three tonnes of the perishable goods a week due to the space crisis and lower demand from buyers.

"Although the profit is very low, I have to ship goods in order to maintain relations with the buyers," he said. He mainly exports to the countries in the Middle East and the UK.

Qatar and another airline have begun carrying goods from the HSIA and some other carriers would soon follow suit, the exporter said. This would increase the quantity of goods exported.

Biman Bangladesh Airlines should start a dedicated cargo flight so that local exporters can enjoy lower fare and grab more share in the international markets, he said.

Only the international airlines are carrying goods, said Shahab Uddin, proprietor of Green Trade House International.

"As a result, I have to pay five times the normal fares despite the fall in quantity of shipment," he said.

He currently exports betel leaves as the demand for vegetables dropped in the Middle East.

"I hope I will be able to ship more soon as other airlines will resume flights in full-scale," he said. He ships two tonnes of goods a week, whereas it was more than 12 tonnes in normal times.

Biman should start a separate cargo flight soon, he also said.

If Biman starts a special flight dedicated for cargoes, it would be better for the local exporters, said Kabir Ahmed, president of the Bangladesh Freight Forwarders Association.

The HSIA is gradually returning to business as international airlines are coming back. However, most of them are chartered flights. As a result, the fares are very high, he said.

In most of the cases, the fares are 300 per cent higher than the normal rates, according to Ahmed, also the president of the International Air Express Association of Bangladesh.

The airlines can't be blamed for the higher fares because of rising operational costs owing to the COVID-19 and security reasons.

"Biman has long been assuring us of introducing cargo flights to important destinations," said Mohammad Mansur, general secretary of the Bangladesh Fruits, Vegetables and Allied Products Exporters Association.

Vegetable and fruit exporters also demanded the construction of an agro-processing warehouse near the HSIA.

"We want the government to build this warehouse as soon as possible," Mansur told The Daily Star by phone.

Usually, the peak season for vegetable and fruit exports begins from April. Because of the pandemic, exports in the first two months of the season were dull.

"But we have three more months. We should utilise this season by starting a special cargo flight by Biman," Mansur said.

He called for reduction of source tax on export receipt to 0.25 per cent from the proposed 0.50 per cent in the budget.

The quantity of exportable goods is also increasing at the HSIA.

Even a few days ago, only 50 tonnes were shipped a day and it rose to 150 tonnes to 220 tonnes in the last one week. This is still lower than 1,200 tonnes shipped through the HSIA before the onset of the pandemic.

Shipment of vegetables, fruits, flowers, dry foods, tea, spices and others dropped 8.7 per cent year-on-year to $780.16 million in the July-May period of the current fiscal year.

Biman officials declined to comment on the issue of launching cargo flights.