40 maunds of mustard from 7 bighas at a cost of Tk 43,000, selling at Tk 3,700 a maund
A farmer in Phulbari, Kurigram expanded from three to seven bighas of mustard after a good year and harvested 40 maunds at a cost of Tk 43,000. He has already sold 20 maunds at Tk 3,700 each and plans to expand again.
According to The Daily Star, a farmer from Anantapur village in Phulbari upazila, Kurigram, harvested 17 maunds of mustard from three bighas the previous season and sold it at Tk 3,000 a maund. Having got the yield and price he expected, he sowed seven bighas this time. At a cost of Tk 43,000 he harvested 40 maunds and has already sold 20 maunds at a local market for Tk 3,700 each; he hopes to expand further next season. Farmers across greater Rangpur said they were getting up to six maunds per bigha at a cost of about Tk 6,000, with prices at Tk 3,600–4,000 a maund against Tk 3,000–3,200 the season before. Mustard is sown in mid-October after the Aman harvest, and Boro is planted in the same field afterwards; a Chilmari farmer said his Boro yields were good after mustard. A Lalmonirhat farmer's experience is a caution: about a decade ago he grew mustard on up to 10 bighas but gave it up for lack of expected prices; he tried one bigha again in 2021 and, after good results, planted six bighas in 2022. Farmers say more people will grow mustard if the price stays above Tk 3,000 a maund. Record edible-oil prices and DAE seed and fertiliser incentives pushed the region's mustard area from 39,290 to 52,552 hectares in 2022.
Lessons
- 1.Rather than going big at once, test yield and price on a small plot, then expand the next season.
- 2.Know the per-maund price you need to profit; when prices fall farmers quit mustard, so sell in lots while watching the price.
- 3.Three-month mustard between Aman and Boro adds income and leaves the soil in good shape for the next Boro crop.
Published with the person's permission, without revealing who they are.
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