Blaming middlemen alone will not fix Bangladesh's farm markets, this analysis argues; fair prices for farmers and consumers need market-led planning, information, storage and coordination.
Neither the golgachh (nipa palm) nor its leaves are round; the name comes from the round clusters of its fruit, and the palm has long sustained Sundarbans leaf collectors and coastal homes.
Ikhteyar Uddin Ahmed Munna gave up a BCS education cadre post and a bank job to build MM Agro, an integrated fish, poultry, cattle and vermicompost farm in his Kishoreganj village.
A trial plot of super hot chilli on just 10 decimals of land in Kaliganj, Gazipur, has brought farmer Kamal Sheikh a good harvest and good market prices, and he plans to expand next season.
The AI-based platform Dr. Chashi, used with about 100,000 farmers since 2020, lets farmers photograph a diseased crop, get a likely diagnosis and act before reaching for pesticide.
Four months after farmers and traders stored hundreds of thousands of tonnes of potatoes in Bogura and Joypurhat hoping for better prices, demand is weak, prices are flat and the stored crop has begun to rot.
Technology, services and value addition could make agriculture a dignified, profitable business sector for young Bangladeshis rather than a last resort.
Mulching is spreading among vegetable farmers in low-lying, rain-prone Barishal because it saves water, weeding and labour and improves yields.
Accurate, location-based weather forecasts and early warnings are becoming one of the most important tools for Bangladeshi farmers facing climate change.
In Bogura, cow dung that was once thrown away now fuels family kitchens through biogas plants, and the leftover slurry goes back to the fields as organic fertiliser.
Every Sunday, amid Tongi's noise and traffic, a roadside market fills with ducks, chickens, pigeons, parrots, rabbits, cats and colourful fish.
Farmers in Chandipasha Charpara village of Pakundia, Kishoreganj, are earning well from early-season beans grown on small plots at low cost, with one hoping to sell about Tk 2 lakh more.
Mizanur Rahman, a driver from Choto Koldhari village in Magura's Mohammadpur, has built three mixed fruit orchards on two and a half bighas since 2021.
