Aman yield rises, Boro shows bright prospects

Aman output rises, boro prospects bright

Aman rice production grew slightly during the current fiscal year amid increased cultivation of modern high yielding varieties. The ongoing boro season also promises a good yield despite a reduction in cultivation areas, analysts said.

The total rice output from the immediate past aman season was 12.89 million tonnes under the current fiscal year, up from 12.80 million tonnes compared to a year ago, according to Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics.

This is the highest ever yield during the aman season due to farmers’ growing interest in the variety as its production cost is lower than that of boro.

Some 30,000 hectares of additional land came under rice farming during the last aman season. The area under high yielding variety has increased, leading to higher production,” said an official of the BBS.

Adequate rains saved irrigation costs during the aman season. New modern varieties have also encouraged farmers to allocate more lands, said Md Syedul Islam, director general of Bangladesh Rice Research Institute (BRRI).

With aman, the total production from the two out of three seasons slipped by 0.52 percent or 80,000 tonnes to 15.05 million tonnes, compared to the previous fiscal year, according to the BBS.

Currently boro, the principal rice crop, is at the maturity stage and harvest is likely to begin after the third week of April. The Department of Agricultural Extension (DAE) had earlier set a target of 1.903 million tonnes for the current fiscal year.

But the boro cultivation area shrank as many farmers shifted to wheat, maize and mustard, frustrated by low prices of paddy last year.

Some 4.75 million hectares of land came under boro cultivation this season, said an official of the DAE, citing a preliminary estimate.

Boro acreage was 4.77 million hectares in the previous season under the fiscal 2011-12 and output was 8.76 million tonnes, according to the BBS.

BRAC, a non-government organisation, in a survey in December found that boro acreage has fallen.

But the increased prices of paddy since January may encourage growers to allocate more lands for the crop, said an economist, Mahabub Hossain, who keenly follows agriculture and rural economy.

“So cultivation area may not have fallen to an extent that was expected. But cost of production will increase because of damages of seedlings for cold-injury,” said Hossain, also the executive director of BRAC.

He said the prospect of a good harvest is bright in some growing zones such as haor areas of the northeast. “The prospect looks bright. A bumper production is likely in haor areas if there is no flash flood in the next two weeks. Crop in Barisal also appears good,” he said.

The overall production from the three crop seasons may not decline compared to the last fiscal year’s total production, Hossain added.

BRRI Director (research) Md Shamsher Ali said a favourable weather brightens the prospect of a good crop. “Despite reduced acreage, increased per unit production is likely to be higher,” he said.

Rice production rose 1.0 percent to 33.89 million tonnes in fiscal 2011-12.