Wheat: The production demand mismatch

Shahana Islam, who lives in Green Road, belongs to a middle-class family of five members. Her regular breakfast comprises twelve handmade rutis (flat bread), veggies, and eggs, with the occasional ‘shemai’. Around eleven, the family has light snacks consisting of biscuits, ‘shingara’, samosa, or muri (puffed rice). They have a meal with rice at noon. In the afternoon, there are handmade snacks, noodles, bakery items prepared with wheat flour, and any fast food (pasta, burgers, donuts, cakes, etc., all made of wheat). For supper six rutis are prepared for 3 people. "During every meal of the day, we have something or the other that is made from wheat flour, whether at home or in a restaurant," Shahana remarked. "Wheat has become an essential element in the daily meals of rich and poor middle-class individuals. We would not have realized this if it were not for the wheat crisis that began recently."

Shahana Islam does have a point. We eat more wheat-based foods after rice. As a result, wheat has become our country's second most widely consumed staple food grain. Wheat was once considered part of a poor man's diet. That was more than thirty years ago. Poor folks used to eat wheat rutis twice a day and rice only once daily. Wheat was a cheap commodity at the time. Because rice was more expensive than wheat at the time, they couldn't have rice for three or two meals per day. Rules or porota were popular among those who were a little better off or wealthier at the time.

From the early 2000s, many people started eating two rice meals a day and ruti for one meal, especially breakfast. People's eating habits continue to change day by day. It began with diabetic patients being recommended to eat homemade ruti. They started eating rice once and ruti twice a day. Since 2010, the capital has seen an increase in restaurants. Eating out at restaurants has become a common practice for many people. Restaurants are beginning to serve more wheat-based dishes. Flour-based foods are still popular in this country.

Furthermore, people are becoming increasingly health-conscious. As a result, many people are reducing their rice consumption in favour of rutis made of wheat flour. Wheat has thus been incorporated in Bengalis' dietary menu in a unique way. Currently, wheat-based foods are consumed more frequently by those who are relatively better off. The prevalence of wheat-based dishes is observed everywhere, whether in a restaurant or at home.

Wheat was initially included in various government programmes, including government rationing, sales at subsidized prices, and food for work programmes. According to data, wheat was imported as food aid to Bangladesh till two decades back. The United Kingdom, the United States, the European Commission, Canada, and the World Food Programme were the major contributors. Until the financial year 1991-1992, the government imported wheat. The government permitted the private sector to import wheat in 1993. Three and a half lakh tonnes of wheat was imported in the first year, as can be seen from relevant data. Following that, it climbed to one million tonne, then two million, and now the country imports more than six million tonnes. Wheat imports have surged six fold in the last two decades since the private sector was allowed to import. All parties agree that the private sector has successfully handled the wheat import market. Hundreds of millions of dollars are being spent to import wheat. This year, the Russia-Ukraine conflict is expected to exceed 200 million dollars.

In the wheat trade, a lot of money has gone overseas. How much has this helped the country's economy? Is our agricultural sector incapable of producing adequate amount of wheat? Wheat production in the country was estimated to be around one lakh tonnes before independence. It expanded tenfold in the decade after the independence. According to wheat harvest records from 1998-99, the country produced 19 lakh 88,000 tonnes of wheat. Imports are increasing now that the country's wheat production is declining. The amount of wheat grown in the country is sufficient to meet only 10 per cent of the demand. The country's overall wheat demand is now 75 lakh tonnes per year.

According to a recent statistic, the supply and demand for wheat have increased significantly in the last eight years. 40 lakh tonnes of wheat were supplied in the 2013–14 financial year. The following year, it grew to 50 lakh tonnes. In the last financial year 2020-2021, the wheat supply was 78 lakh tonnes. Bangladesh is now the fifth-largest importer of wheat.

Where does Bangladesh import wheat from? It is well known that these five countries produce the most wheat– China, India, Russia, the United States, and Canada. Regarding wheat production, Bangladesh is ranked 51st in the world. Russia, Ukraine, the United States, Australia, France, and Canada are the top exporters of wheat. The majority of Bangladesh's wheat comes from Russia and Ukraine. After the war in Ukraine, Bangladesh started buying wheat from India. Until India banned exports, Bangladesh imported 63 per cent of its wheat from India.

Why has wheat cultivation plummeted despite the country's high demand for the grain? It's difficult to say how much wheat imports have benefitted the country or who are involved in this multibillion-dollar trade. Wheat production has decreased, and maize, sorghum, and even barley have taken their place. Many people are concerned that these crops are not playing a substantial role as wheat substitutes. This begs the question: is our country's climate unsuitable for wheat cultivation? Why aren't farmers growing wheat?

"Our country's soil climate is actually fairly favorable for wheat cultivation," agriculture authorities operating in the field said. Wheat is grown primarily in Kushtia, Meherpur, and Chuadanga. When the blast disease infected wheat in these regions in 2016, a substantial amount of wheat crop was destroyed in the fields. Wheat production has been low for several years because of this. At this time, research was done on controlling blast disease in wheat and developing blast-resistant wheat varieties. Farmers and agricultural workers have now figured out how to control the disease and grow blast-resistant wheat. So now wheat production has started again in the country.

Regardless of the agriculture officials' explanation about wheat production, wheat import has become quite lucrative here. Thus the production of wheat has declined locally. Therefore, whatever the situation, the country has suitable soil, a suitable climate, and an adequate number of farmers for wheat cultivation. Why can we not cultivate wheat in the country and meet its needs? Farmers in the country will earn a good income from this. Extensive employment will be created with large-scale wheat cultivation. The country's money will remain in the country. If wheat is produced in the country, people can buy flour at lower prices.

A global food crisis has erupted since the war in Ukraine. Egypt is experiencing a particularly severe situation as the North African country used to import wheat and other food grains from Ukraine and Russia. Therefore, it can be said that it is better to produce the main food grains in the country if there is a suitable environment for their production because there always seems to be some global crisis or another going on nowadays.

As a result, many countries are farming their main food instead of relying on other countries. Food security, for example, was a crucial issue in the Arab Spring uprising of 2011. The climate in the Middle East is not conducive to agriculture. Cultivating using traditional farming methods is difficult due to a lack of irrigation water and a hostile environment. That is why, since the Arab Spring, wealthy Middle Eastern countries, led by Saudi Arabia, have been buying large tracts of land outside of their borders to farm.

Similarly, Israel faces water shortages in the agricultural sector. They are growing crops with the aid of technology, including improved irrigation techniques and seawater desalination. So we should learn from these countries and cultivate ourselves without relying on imports for the main food grains.

The writer is a freelance columnist. She can be contacted at [email protected]