Onion farmers in Faridpur are in serious trouble this year. Those who had hoped for good prices at the start of the season saw their hopes dashed when onion prices suddenly fell before Ramadan. A maund of onions now fetches Tk 950 to at most Tk 1,100, far below the cost of production.

Enquiries in various upazilas on Friday (6 March) found more sellers than buyers. Needing cash, many farmers are forced to sell cheaply and go home disappointed.

According to the agriculture office of Saltha upazila, known as Faridpur's onion capital, onions have been grown on about 12,500 hectares in Saltha this season.

Farmers say that, counting fertiliser, seed, pesticides, labour, irrigation and transport, a maund of onions costs about Tk 1,400 to Tk 1,500 to produce, so they are losing Tk 500 to Tk 600 on every maund they sell.

Shafikul Islam, a farmer who came to sell onions at Baliya market in the upazila, said production costs about Tk 1,400 to Tk 1,500 a maund because pesticides, fertiliser and other chemicals have to be bought at high prices. But he is now forced to sell at a loss for only Tk 600 to Tk 700 a maund.

Jasimuddin, another farmer from Baliagatti village, said he grew onions on five bighas at a cost of about Tk 1,200 to Tk 1,300 per bigha. Farmers with good yields had relatively lower costs, and those with poor yields had higher costs, he said.

He added that if farmers do not get fair prices against their production costs, they may lose interest in growing onions, and if domestic production falls the country may have to import from abroad.

Md Abdul Khaleque, owner of Messrs Malek Traders at Baliya market in Saltha, said the onion market has been unchanged for a week. He is buying onions at Tk 25 to Tk 26 a kg and losing Tk 1 to Tk 2 on every kilogram.

"Onions are now farmers' only hope of survival. Just as farmers want to survive by selling onions, traders have to buy them. But often there is not a proper consignment even for one day. If onions were Tk 1,500 to Tk 1,600 a maund, farmers would profit and traders would also do good business," he said.

Weekly onion markets are held in almost every union of Saltha upazila. Large markets sit on Saturdays and Wednesdays at Nakulhati; on Sundays and Wednesdays at Thenthenia and Saltha Sadar Hat; and on Fridays and Mondays at Baliagatti, Kagdi, Joykail, Montar More, Majhardia, Baushkhali and Jadunandi. Wholesalers come from Faridpur, neighbouring districts and divisional cities to buy truckloads. Even so, local growers say the crop they sweated for is leaving on trucks loaded with losses.

Asked about this, Saltha upazila agriculture officer and agriculturist Sudarshan Sikder said onion prices depend mainly on market demand. Prices are usually fairly good at the start of the season each year, but this year is an exception. Demand is relatively low, so prices are low too, and many farmers are forced to sell cheaply to repay debts. If possible, he said, farmers should store their onions for a while.

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