Onion farmers in Faridpur are facing heavy losses at current prices. Far from making a profit, they cannot even recover their costs, and they are frustrated.

Inquiries found that onions are selling at Tk 1,500 to a maximum of Tk 1,700 a maund in small and large markets across the district and its upazilas. Farmers say that if they could sell at a minimum of Tk 2,000 to Tk 2,200 a maund, they would at least recover their costs; they might not make much profit, but they would not lose money.

The haat at Thenthenia bazar in Saltha upazila is held twice a week, on Sundays and Wednesdays. From the morning, farmers bring onions by van, nasimon, auto-rickshaw or in sacks on their heads, and the haat runs until noon. Besides local traders, buyers come from far across the country; more than 200 traders attend each haat and at least 300 tonnes of onions change hands, which are taken to divisional and district towns across the country.

At the Satoir onion market in Boalmari upazila, onions were selling at Tk 1,500 to a maximum of Tk 1,700 a maund depending on type.

Alim Sheikh, who came to sell onions at the haat, said: "This time I grew more onions than other years. I still have about 250 maunds at home. I had hoped for a good price. I bring two to four maunds to each haat and sell them, but at the price I am getting, forget profit, I am not even covering my costs."

Kapil Biswas, an onion farmer at Sahasrail bazar in Rupapat union of Boalmari upazila, said: "This time I got about 300 maunds of onions. I did not sell at first, thinking I would get a better price later. The cost of producing onions has risen, but prices have not risen at the same rate. Now, after keeping them on the loft at home for several months, they have lost some weight, and the price is also low. What hope of profit? Now I cannot even keep my capital."

Onion farmer Suit Mondal said: "When I harvested the onions a few months ago, the price was about a thousand. I kept them at home all this time hoping for a better price, but now it is hard to hold on to our capital at market rates. On top of that, the onions have lost weight. If we got Tk 2,000 to Tk 2,200 a maund in the market, we would not make a profit, but at least we would not make a loss."

Onion trader Arshad Molla said he buys at least 20 trucks of onions a week from markets across the district and sends them to other districts. "We buy from farmers and sell to the mahajan at a small profit after costs," he said.

Shahidul Islam Sohag, chairman of Atghar union in Saltha upazila, said Saltha upazila is the capital of onions. More than a crore taka worth of onions is traded at each haat at Thenthenia bazar, with traders coming from several divisional cities, including Dhaka, Chattogram and Barishal, he said.

Asked about the situation, Shahedujjaman, deputy director of the district Department of Agricultural Extension, said: "We have no control over onion market prices, and there is nothing we can do about it. Three types of onion are grown in Faridpur: murikata, hali and dana onions. Of these, hali onions are grown the most. This season onions were grown on 38,000 hectares in the district, and the yield rate has also been quite good."

Source: Jagonews24. First published in Bengali on The Agro News.