Rawhide price plummets in Ctg despite govt intervention

Rawhide traders in Chattogram are struggling to sell their Eid-ul-Azha collections as prices have dropped far below the government-fixed rates. Many seasonal traders and households were forced to donate or dispose of unsold stock due to a lack of buyers.

Despite the government's announcement of fixed prices -- Tk 60–65 per sq ft for salted cowhide in Dhaka and Tk 55–60 outside the capital -- traders in Chattogram said most transactions took place at significantly lower rates.

In the city's Halishahar Housing Society K-block, resident Abdus Sabur told The Daily Star, "No one came to buy cowhide this year. After waiting till noon, I finally gave it away to a local charitable organisation."

The situation was similar in the Bandar Residential Area, where resident MA Salam said, "No buyer came to the area. A couple of madrasa representatives showed up seeking donations. Eventually, we handed the hide over to the Islami Samaj Kalyan Sangstha."

In South Khulshi Residential Area, Khurshid Alam, another city resident, shared that he donated his cowhide to a nearby orphanage as no one came to purchase it.

However, some people did manage to sell hides, but at less than half the government-fixed price.

Sarwar Jahan, a resident of the Oxygen area in Chattogram, said, "According to the government rate, the price of a hide measuring about 20 square feet is around Tk 1,400 to Tk 1,600, but I sold mine for only Tk 430."

Moslem Uddin, former vice president of the Chattogram Rawhide Warehouse Traders' Cooperative Association, said the government-fixed rates apply only to processed hides. "Many mistakenly believe that wholesalers are obligated to purchase rawhide from seasonal traders at the same rates," he said.

He added that tanners often impose up to a 20 percent deduction based on the quality of the hide, and the cost of transporting hides to Dhaka, where most tanneries are located, further discourages fair pricing in Chattogram.

Seasonal trader Atikur Rahman reported buying 170 cowhides at an average price of Tk 350 each but later had to sell them at just Tk 250 apiece.

The association had targeted the collection of 3 lakh hides this year -- a 14 percent drop from 3.5 lakh in 2024. This continues a downward trend from previous years: 3.9 lakh in 2023, 4.1 lakh in 2022, 4.7 lakh in 2021, 5.5 lakh in 2020, and 5.75 lakh in 2019.

Currently, Chattogram hosts around 200 rawhide warehouses and employs 20,000–25,000 people directly and indirectly in the sector.

Traders blamed the collapse of the local rawhide processing industry on compliance challenges with Department of Environment (DoE) regulations. Of the 22 tanneries that once operated in Chattogram, only one -- Riff Leather --remains functional today.