Commercial sunflower cultivation has begun in Subarnachar upazila, Noakhali. To expand it, the Bangladesh Agricultural Development Corporation (BADC) has set up a seed multiplication farm there for sunflower and other oilseeds and pulses. To bring healthy sunflower oil to people, Globe Agro Ltd has taken the initiative to build the country's first modern sunflower oil factory.

The flower faces the sun from sunrise and lowers its head as the sun sets, hence its name. The scene of Sophia Loren walking through Russian sunflower fields in the 1970 Italian film "Sunflower" once captivated people in Bangladesh too, and many dreamed of such fields. Now Subarnachar is reporting a major success.

Seeing fields full of flowers, farmers are newly interested. This year sunflower was grown on about 154 acres in Char Bazlul Karim, Char Amanullah and West Char Bhata. Farmers say they lag behind only in marketing.

Taking farmers' problems seriously, industrialist Harun-or-Rashid has come forward with a new vision for sunflower farming and oil production. The country's first state-of-the-art factory for making oil from sunflower seed has been built in Rupganj, Narayanganj, and he said oil production would start soon. Farmers say sunflower could become one of their most profitable crops if they get market support.

Source: Shykh Seraj, Hridoye Mati O Manush. First published in Bengali on The Agro News.