http://www.theindependent-bd.com/details.php?nid=159185
Jute regains momentum as demand rises globally
ECONOMIC REPORTER
Jute has started to regain its momentum as the demands for jute and jute goods have increased at the global market bypassing the dominance of artificial fibre.
This has created an opportunity for Bangladesh to fetch huge amount of foreign exchange through widening export baskets. For exploring this opportunity the country needs to nurture cultivation of jute for raising production side by side promote manufacturing of jute goods through expanding jute industries, says a press release.
Experts said this at a press conference in the city here yesterday. Incidin Bangladesh, a research based development organisation organised the press conference to highlight its study on promotion of jute sector.
Executive director of Incidin Bangladesh AKM Masud Ali presented a written statement at the press conference while other executive directors Ratan Sarker and AKM Mustak Ali also spoke. In the paper, AKM Masud Ali said for promoting jute production, the government should extend farm loans for jute sector, side by side it should provide subsidies on inputs required for jute cultivation and play due role in purchase of jute for ensuring appropriate price for the item.
Referring to data by Bangladesh Jute Spinners Association, he said the production of jute in the country is not sufficient to meet the demand of the local jute mills, as the private jute mills at present require 30 lakh to 32 lakh bales of jute while the annual production of the item is 55 lakh to 60 lakh tons (one bale equals 180 kg). The cultivation of ‘deshi’ and ‘tossa’ varieties of raw jute in the northern districts including Lalmonorhat, Rangpur, and Dinajpur could not fulfill the target during the current season despite there was huge demand for the item at the global market at this moment, he added. Against target of bringing 6407 hectares of land under harvesting, deshi jute was cultivated only in an area of 4865 hactres of land in these three districts, while ‘tossa’ jute was cultivated in an area of 11762 hactres of land against target of 12300 hactres, he said.
The price of jute has increased by maximum 185 per cent during last two years, as in Rangpur jute is sold for Tk 923 per mound against Tk 323 per mound in 2007. The price for the item has increased to Tk 1400 per mond in 2009 from Tk 700 per mond in 2007 in Pirojpur, Masud Ali said.
The price of raw jute has increased as the demand for the item went higher both at local and global market, he said adding, despite this the target of jute production could not be achieved due to lack of adequate supports to the farmers at cultivation level.
“The farmers earned large amounts from production of jute due to jump in jute prices and also because of higher productivity due to use of high breed jute seeds,” he added.
