Jute growers have started harvesting their cash crop across the country but there is no visible benefit in producing jute due to low market price, said officials and farmers.
The production of jute might further decline this year due to crop damage caused by drought and rough weather, they said. Jute harvesting season generally starts in mid-July.
Chandan Mia, a jute grower in Bhairab Upazila of Kishoreganj district, said he has already harvested about five maunds of raw jute from his one bhiga of land and sold at Tk 6,000 at the local market in the beginning of August.
‘The sale of jute has not brought me any profit as the production cost was higher than the sale price of jute,’ he said.
Jahirul Islam, another grower in Faridpur district, said he has sold some 40 kilograms of meesta jute at Tk 1,150 recently. The price did not give him any profit, he said.
Harun-ur-Rashid, a leader of jute growers’ association, based in Faridpur, demanded of the government to set a minimum market price of raw jute above Tk 2,000 if it really wants to ensure fair price to the growers.
When asked, an official at the department of agriculture extension estimated that per hectare production of jute would likely to stand at about 10 bales whose price would be on an average about Tk 60,000.
The production cost of that jute in per hectare of land would be almost same, he said.
The DAE official said that production cost has increased due to higher labour cost and costs of other inputs.
When asked, jute department director general RC Barman told New Age on Monday that jute harvest has just begun and the price of jute would further increase after a few weeks.
‘The government will soon take action to quickly enforce the mandatory jute packaging act,’ he said, adding that implementation of the act would certainly increase local consumption of raw jute.
The farmers would then start getting better prices, said Barman.
According to statistics available at the department of jute as on August 4, Tossa jute was selling at Tk 1,100 per maund in Dhaka, Tangail and Barisal while the maximum rate was Tk 1,800 in Madaripur.
White jute was selling at a minimum price of Tk 1,100 per maund in Narayanganj while maximum Tk 1,600 in Jamalpur and Madaripur.
Mesta was selling at Tk 950 to Tk 1000 in Dhaka and Chowmohuni while the maximum price was Tk 1,750 in Narayanganj.
According to Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics, total jute production has declined to 74,36, 228 bales in 2013-14 fiscal year from 76,10,585 bales in 2012-13 fiscal year.
-With New Age input
