Technology saves rice growers money: Study

Using modern technologies and machinery can reduce the cost of cultivating and processing rice, thus benefitting farmers and rice mill owners, according to a study released yesterday.

The rice processing cost can also be reduced by upgrading processing factories into automatic rice mills that contain modern rice processing technologies, including rubber-roll huller, rubber polishing and paddy separator, said the study conducted by Agro Mech Development Initiatives Foundation (ADI) in Tanore upazila of Rajshahi and Sherpur Sadar upazila between March and April.

Traidcraft funded the study.

Dr Monjurul Alam, a professor of Bangladesh Agricultural University, who led the study, presented its findings at a meeting at the capital's The Daily Star Centre.

To use the modern technologies, the farmers need to farm in a planned way and adapt to the conservation agriculture that significantly reduces irrigation cost, Monjurul stressed. 

"The existing husking mills need to be upgraded into automatic rice mills to survive in business competition as the automatic mills produces comparatively better quality rice that gets better price in the market," he said.

He added that the government needs to provide financial support to the factory owners to do the upgrades.

Infrastructural development is also needed to use the modern technologies, Monjurul viewed.

Shahed Ferdous, country director of Traidcraft, said small rice farmers were the main target of the study, adding, "So we need to focus on the farmers in terms of technological advancement."

Emphasising the use of technologies, Abdul Khaleque, executive director of Grameen Manobic Unnyan Sangstha, said the rice value chain will not be well maintained if the farmers fail to produce rice in low cost.

"We also need to ensure good pricing for the farmers," he stressed.

The rice mill owners cannot offer good price to the farmers during the Boro season as mill owners have some limitations to dry and process the rice as it has been harvested during rainy season, said Enamul Haq, a rice mill owner in Sherpur.

“The farmers, too, face difficulty to dry and store their rice in the season. So they have to sell their paddy to the mills at low prices," he said.