Rangpur: Farmers across all five districts of the Rangpur agricultural region produced 9,938 tonnes of groundnuts, a profitable cash crop, during the recently concluded Kharif-1 season. According to Bangladesh Sangbad Sangstha, market sources report that farmers are pleased with the profits earned by selling their produce to wholesalers at rates ranging from Taka 6,200 to Taka 6,500 per mound (40-kg).
Officials from the Department of Agricultural Extension (DAE) indicated that a target of producing 11,492 tonnes of groundnut from 5,365 hectares of land was set for the region during the last Kharif-1 season. However, farmers cultivated groundnut on 5,084 hectares of land and produced 9,938 tonnes after completing the harvest last week.
"In the last Kharif-1 season, a slight shortfall in the targeted area for groundnut farming was observed due to crop diversification, as farmers cultivated vegetables and maize on a larger area of land," said Additional Director of the DAE for Rangpur region, Krishibid Md Saiful Islam.
Farmers are now preparing the same land for cultivating early varieties of winter vegetables following the groundnut harvest in Rangpur, Gaibandha, Lalmonirhat, Kurigram, and Nilphamari districts. Consultant for Rupantar Project of International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center (CIMMYT) in Bangladesh, Krishibid Dr Md Mamunur Rashid, highlighted that groundnut cultivation has become a profitable venture for farmers.
Farmers are experiencing bumper harvests and satisfactory prices as the cultivation of high-yielding groundnut varieties developed by the Bangladesh Agricultural Research Institute (BARI) expands. Rashid noted the increasing demand for groundnuts in the food industry, prompting farmers to expand cultivation in the mainland and riverine char areas.
Rashid added that groundnut farmers are earning an average profit of up to Taka one-lakh by producing 25 to 30 mounds per acre, excluding farming costs of Taka 50,000 per acre. The cultivation is benefiting people living along riverbanks and char areas, driven by demand, low production costs, and good market prices, thus improving livelihoods.
Groundnut trader Muhammad Mokhlesur Rahman at Rangpur City Market stated that farmers are selling their just-harvested groundnuts to wholesalers at rates between Taka 6,200 and Taka 6,500 per mound, depending on varieties and qualities. Retailers are purchasing these groundnuts at rates between Taka 6,400 and Taka 7,000 per mound.
Farmers Nurul Islam, Jahurul Alam, Anwarul Islam, Afzal Hossain, and Harunur Rashid from Pirgachha and Kawnia upazilas reported bumper groundnut yields with rewarding prices during the just-concluded Kharif-1 season.