WHEN a bumper harvest of potatoes is a relief for consumers, who had to pay high prices for the item even three months ago, the prospect for the producers appears bleak. Producers are faced with heavy losses as they are forced to sell their produce for prices below the production cost. Potatoes sell for Tk 10–12 a kilogram on the local wholesale market and for Tk 15-18 a kilogram on the local retail market while it is retailed for Tk 25–30 a kilogram in Dhaka. Producers and agricultural officials say that it costs around Tk 20 to produce a kilogram of potato this year as farmers had to pay high prices for seeds and fertiliser. While an overproduction is the visible cause for the sharp decline in the price, a lack of cold storage facilities has exacerbated the situation for farmers, especially small farmers. The Department of Agricultural Extension says that potatoes were grown on a record 5.24 lakh hectares, up 15 per cent year-on-year. The agency estimates that about 120 lakh tonnes of potatoes would be produced this year; 106 lakh tonnes of potatoes were produced in 2024.
What has added to woes of the producers is the lack of cold storage facilities. While the potato acreage and production have increased significantly over the years, the number of cold storages remains the same, leaving growers struggling to store their produce. There are 220 cold storages in Rajshahi and Rangpur divisions where 75 per cent of potatoes are produced. With many farmers queuing up to store their produce, the cold storage owners have increased fees for about Tk 60 a sack. Most farmers, especially small farmers, as a result, are forced to sell their produce, incurring heavy losses, which become heavier considering that many of them took out loans at high interest rates for potato production. Farmers also allege that when they are denied space in cold storages, some hoarders and storage owners stockpile potatoes in the cold storages. Reports of such a syndicate of businesspeople and cold storage owners came up in the past, too, but the authorities did little to break the syndicate and ensure small farmers’ access to storage facilities. The authorities have also failed to set up or facilitate the establishment of cold storages.
The authorities should, therefore, address the grievances of the farmers and ensure their access to storage facilities. The agricultural authorities should also set up and help to set up more cold storages and facilitate farmers to create traditional storage facilities that can store potatoes for a few months.