Anisul Islam Noor :
In the current winter season, tomato has been selling at Tk 80 per kg in retail markets in Dhaka city, though this popular item is purchased from farmer only at Tk 10.
The farmers are being deprived of the fair price of tomato that is used both as salad and vegetables. In absence of the farmers ‘marketing group’, a syndicate and middlemen are making a hefty profit out of this.
Agriculture Department sources said, 70 per cent of the country’s total production of tomato comes from Rajshahi and 60 per cent of this tomato is produced in Godagari upazila alone of the district.
This year, farmers were cheated following buying of low quality seeds. Buyers are purchasing tomatoes at higher prices, but farmers are not getting the fair price.
The middlemen are taking benefit of high price of tomato in retail markets, while the farmers were selling tomato at Tk 10 per kg at wholesale market. As a result, farmers are worried about the loss of tomato cultivation in the current season.
Meanwhile, traders and middlemen (Fariya) are gathering in Rajshahi from different districts, including Dhaka, Chittagong and Sylhet to buy tomatoes. The allegation has been raised that big businessmen and middlemen syndicate are offering lower price of tomato as per understanding among them.
As a result, the farmers are forced to sell tomato at the reduced rate as there is no facility of keeping in stock of ripe as tomatoes.
One month ago, at the beginning of current season, the tomato was selling at Tk 1800 per mound (40kg). Then the price was reduced to Tk 1200 per mound. Tomato prices fall below Tk 1000 when more tomato starts to harvest.
At present, ripe tomato is being sold at only Tk 400 per mound that mean the traders and middlemen are buying per kg ripe tomato at Tk 10 from the farmers. As a result, the farmers have become loser.
Tomato farmer Ajmal Haq of Qadipur in Godagari upazila said that Tk 18000 to Tk 20000 were spent in cultivating one bigha tomato field. But we are now worried that the cost of producing tomato may not return at the present price.
Another tomato cultivator Shafikul Islam of Basanatpur village of Godagari upazila said, the price has started to fall from mid-December while more tomato is being arrived from the field.
The total tomato cultivation in Rajshahi was 3,150 hectares of land, of which 2,500 hectares cultivated in Godagari upazila only.
In the current winter season, tomato has been selling at Tk 80 per kg in retail markets in Dhaka city, though this popular item is purchased from farmer only at Tk 10.
The farmers are being deprived of the fair price of tomato that is used both as salad and vegetables. In absence of the farmers ‘marketing group’, a syndicate and middlemen are making a hefty profit out of this.
Agriculture Department sources said, 70 per cent of the country’s total production of tomato comes from Rajshahi and 60 per cent of this tomato is produced in Godagari upazila alone of the district.
This year, farmers were cheated following buying of low quality seeds. Buyers are purchasing tomatoes at higher prices, but farmers are not getting the fair price.
The middlemen are taking benefit of high price of tomato in retail markets, while the farmers were selling tomato at Tk 10 per kg at wholesale market. As a result, farmers are worried about the loss of tomato cultivation in the current season.
Meanwhile, traders and middlemen (Fariya) are gathering in Rajshahi from different districts, including Dhaka, Chittagong and Sylhet to buy tomatoes. The allegation has been raised that big businessmen and middlemen syndicate are offering lower price of tomato as per understanding among them.
As a result, the farmers are forced to sell tomato at the reduced rate as there is no facility of keeping in stock of ripe as tomatoes.
One month ago, at the beginning of current season, the tomato was selling at Tk 1800 per mound (40kg). Then the price was reduced to Tk 1200 per mound. Tomato prices fall below Tk 1000 when more tomato starts to harvest.
At present, ripe tomato is being sold at only Tk 400 per mound that mean the traders and middlemen are buying per kg ripe tomato at Tk 10 from the farmers. As a result, the farmers have become loser.
Tomato farmer Ajmal Haq of Qadipur in Godagari upazila said that Tk 18000 to Tk 20000 were spent in cultivating one bigha tomato field. But we are now worried that the cost of producing tomato may not return at the present price.
Another tomato cultivator Shafikul Islam of Basanatpur village of Godagari upazila said, the price has started to fall from mid-December while more tomato is being arrived from the field.
The total tomato cultivation in Rajshahi was 3,150 hectares of land, of which 2,500 hectares cultivated in Godagari upazila only.
