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Potato exports jump as prices plunge in local market
Bangladeshâs potato shipments nearly doubled in just the first eight months of this fiscal year as locally grown tubers became attractive to buyers abroad after prices fell below farmersâ production costs.
Potato exports jump as prices plunge in local market
Bangladesh's potato shipments nearly doubled in just the first eight months of this fiscal year as locally grown tubers became attractive to buyers abroad after prices fell below farmers' production costs.
According to the Department of Agricultural Extension (DAE), Bangladesh exported roughly 24,000 tonnes of potatoes until March 15 of the current fiscal year, almost double the quantity shipped across the whole of FY24.
In February alone, potato exports reached around 12,000 tonnes, matching the total exports of the year prior.
That was a month when farmers, especially those in the northwest regions of the country, were compelled to sell their produce for as low as Tk 11 per kilogramme (kg), far lower by the DAE's estimated production costs of Tk 15 per kg this season.
Experts believe this development occurred due to a production glut following cultivation on a record area of land.
The starchy vegetable was cultivated on a record 5.24 lakh hectares of land this fiscal year, up 15 percent year-on-year, propelled by prices reaching as high as Tk 80 per kg last November.
"The increase in potato exports this year is due to low prices," said Hafizur Rahman Mintu, who has exported around 9,000 tonnes of potatoes to Nepal, Malaysia and Singapore so far this year.
He has already recorded an 80 percent increase compared to his total exports in FY24.
This year, exporters have been able to purchase potatoes at Tk 10 to Tk 20 per kg whereas the price ranged from Tk 30 to Tk 40 per kg last year, he said.
Tawhidul Islam, another exporter, said he exported around 8,400 tonnes of potatoes this fiscal year to Malaysia, Singapore, Nepal and Bahrain, whereas it was around 1,400 tonnes in the previous fiscal year.
This year, they have been able to procure potatoes for around Tk 10 per kg whereas the price was Tk 30 per kg last year, he said.
Another exporter said the low prices this year allowed him to export 1,300 tonnes of potatoes to Sri Lanka this year, marking the first time he has shipped to the island nation.
Exporters are primarily sourcing high-demand varieties like Granola, Diamond-7 and Majestic.
However, despite high production volumes, exporters are facing challenges in sourcing enough export-quality potatoes as the supply of premium-grade potatoes is limited, said Md Afzal Hossain, acting deputy director of the DAE in Rangpur.
As such, the DAE has advised farmers to cultivate export-oriented varieties such as Granola, Santana, and Kumari.
Hossain also emphasised the need for increased cultivation of these varieties and enhanced storage solutions to prevent future price crashes.
Syed Md Rafiqul Amin, managing director of Hortex Foundation under the agriculture ministry, said rising exports would bring some relief to farmers in major potato-growing regions, who were incurring losses while harvests were running in full swing.
Already, prices have started to rise at the growers' end, though retail prices of the vegetable remained unchanged at Tk 20-Tk 30 per kg in Dhaka, according to data from the Trading Corporation of Bangladesh.
This fiscal year, total production is expected to reach 1.20 crore tonnes, according to Bangladesh Cold Storage Association, a major player in the local supply chain.
Last fiscal year, 1.06 crore tonnes of potatoes were produced, according to Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics estimates.
Amin of Hortex Foundation said they were connecting farmers with exporters.
Exporters can purchase potatoes at lower prices this fiscal year compared to the previous fiscal year due to better yields, which is why exports have increased, he said.
Bangladesh's potato exports began in 1999, according to the Food and Agriculture Organization, though only a small amount was exported at that time.
In the past nine years since FY16, Bangladesh has annually exported around 50,000 tonnes of potatoes on average, as per the DAE. However, exports dropped last fiscal year.
[Kongkon Karmaker contributed this report.]
Bangladesh's potato shipments nearly doubled in just the first eight months of this fiscal year as locally grown tubers became attractive to buyers abroad after prices fell below farmers' production costs.
According to the Department of Agricultural Extension (DAE), Bangladesh exported roughly 24,000 tonnes of potatoes until March 15 of the current fiscal year, almost double the quantity shipped across the whole of FY24.
In February alone, potato exports reached around 12,000 tonnes, matching the total exports of the year prior.
That was a month when farmers, especially those in the northwest regions of the country, were compelled to sell their produce for as low as Tk 11 per kilogramme (kg), far lower by the DAE's estimated production costs of Tk 15 per kg this season.
Experts believe this development occurred due to a production glut following cultivation on a record area of land.
The starchy vegetable was cultivated on a record 5.24 lakh hectares of land this fiscal year, up 15 percent year-on-year, propelled by prices reaching as high as Tk 80 per kg last November.
"The increase in potato exports this year is due to low prices," said Hafizur Rahman Mintu, who has exported around 9,000 tonnes of potatoes to Nepal, Malaysia and Singapore so far this year.
He has already recorded an 80 percent increase compared to his total exports in FY24.
This year, exporters have been able to purchase potatoes at Tk 10 to Tk 20 per kg whereas the price ranged from Tk 30 to Tk 40 per kg last year, he said.
Tawhidul Islam, another exporter, said he exported around 8,400 tonnes of potatoes this fiscal year to Malaysia, Singapore, Nepal and Bahrain, whereas it was around 1,400 tonnes in the previous fiscal year.
This year, they have been able to procure potatoes for around Tk 10 per kg whereas the price was Tk 30 per kg last year, he said.
Another exporter said the low prices this year allowed him to export 1,300 tonnes of potatoes to Sri Lanka this year, marking the first time he has shipped to the island nation.
Exporters are primarily sourcing high-demand varieties like Granola, Diamond-7 and Majestic.
However, despite high production volumes, exporters are facing challenges in sourcing enough export-quality potatoes as the supply of premium-grade potatoes is limited, said Md Afzal Hossain, acting deputy director of the DAE in Rangpur.
As such, the DAE has advised farmers to cultivate export-oriented varieties such as Granola, Santana, and Kumari.
Hossain also emphasised the need for increased cultivation of these varieties and enhanced storage solutions to prevent future price crashes.
Syed Md Rafiqul Amin, managing director of Hortex Foundation under the agriculture ministry, said rising exports would bring some relief to farmers in major potato-growing regions, who were incurring losses while harvests were running in full swing.
Already, prices have started to rise at the growers' end, though retail prices of the vegetable remained unchanged at Tk 20-Tk 30 per kg in Dhaka, according to data from the Trading Corporation of Bangladesh.
This fiscal year, total production is expected to reach 1.20 crore tonnes, according to Bangladesh Cold Storage Association, a major player in the local supply chain.
Last fiscal year, 1.06 crore tonnes of potatoes were produced, according to Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics estimates.
Amin of Hortex Foundation said they were connecting farmers with exporters.
Exporters can purchase potatoes at lower prices this fiscal year compared to the previous fiscal year due to better yields, which is why exports have increased, he said.
Bangladesh's potato exports began in 1999, according to the Food and Agriculture Organization, though only a small amount was exported at that time.
In the past nine years since FY16, Bangladesh has annually exported around 50,000 tonnes of potatoes on average, as per the DAE. However, exports dropped last fiscal year.
[Kongkon Karmaker contributed this report.]
