Hilsa has moved beyond the reach of ordinary buyers, from the wholesale depots to the retail markets. Against this background the Bangladesh Trade and Tariff Commission (BTTC) has studied why prices have risen and recommended fixing prices by weight to relieve consumers of the "tyranny" of the national fish's sky-high price.

The commission has sent its report to the secretaries of the Ministry of Commerce and the Ministry of Fisheries and Livestock. It says that in August this year hilsa of 1.5 kg or more sold for Tk 2,800 to Tk 3,000 a kg; fish of 1 kg to 1.5 kg averaged Tk 2,500 to Tk 2,600 a kg; fish of 750 grams to 1 kg sold for Tk 1,500 a kg; and fish of half a kilogram to 750 grams for Tk 1,200 to Tk 1,400 a kg.

In August last year, by contrast, hilsa of 1.5 kg or more sold for Tk 1,800 to Tk 2,000 a kg, 1 kg to 1.5 kg fish for Tk 1,600 to Tk 1,800, 750 grams to 1 kg fish for Tk 1,100 to Tk 1,150, and 500 to 750 gram fish for Tk 800 to Tk 1,000 a kg.

The BTTC report says that while hilsa sells locally for up to Tk 3,000 a kg, the export price to India this year is Tk 1,533 a kg. So far this year 97.36 tonnes have been exported to India at that price.

If traders can make a profit at the current export price, the report says, then at local market prices they are making abnormal profits over the cost of production (the procurement cost). The commission compares costs: fishers use three kinds of boat. The total cost of a kilogram of hilsa is Tk 813 for those fishing from small boats, Tk 847 from medium boats and Tk 828 from large boats, yet the same fish sells for up to Tk 3,000 at retail.

Hilsa generally reaches the consumer after four to six changes of hands, the commission says, and at each stage the price rises by up to 59-60 per cent. Fishers are denied a fair price at the first stage, and consumers ultimately bear the burden.

The commission identified 11 reasons for the rise in hilsa prices: imbalance of demand and supply, hoarding and syndicates, higher fuel and transport costs, higher fishing costs, loss of river navigability and environmental problems, use of illegal nets, dadon (advance loans), alternative employment, fishing during the ban period, the dominance of middlemen, and export pressure.

On the demand-supply imbalance, the report says traders often create an artificial shortage by building up illegal stocks of hilsa.

Moinul Khan, chairman of the Tariff Commission, told the media the field study found that although hilsa is almost entirely a domestic product, there is artificiality behind its market price, since international trade and dollar fluctuations have little effect on catching it. The key finding was the many layers of middlemen after the catch and their excess profits.

Moinul Khan added that manipulation by dadon lenders plays the biggest role. The study recommends reducing these layers, monitoring dadon lenders and, most importantly, analysing the cost of hilsa and setting maximum prices by size. That way small sellers would get a fair price and consumers would buy at a set price.

Besides price-setting, the report recommends forming fishers' cooperatives so they can sell directly to wholesalers or depot owners; an online platform to shorten the supply chain; special government hilsa sales centres in the main cities to ensure fair prices; cold storage; compulsory registration and licensing of all depot owners and wholesalers; fixed reasonable profit margins at each stage of supply; and easy-term, collateral-free loans to curb the power of dadon lenders.

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