Hybrid seeds making inroads on farming

The breakthrough of hybrid seeds offers farmers the chance to eventually enhance their crop yield around 30 per cent.

In the last five years, hybrid rice seed cultivation doubled in the country, with 13 per cent of land currently under crossbred farming which is increasing gradually.

In Fiscal Year 2020-21, farmers brought 15,11,200 hectares of land under an improved variety of rice production.

In FY 2015-16, the number of farming encompassed only 8,11,000 hectaresof land.

As a sequel of hybrid seed cultivation, farmers are harvesting two to threetimesmore than what local varieties yielded.

Taking an optimum crop productionissue into consideration, thegovernment is promoting hybrid varieties of different crops especially rice, maize and vegetables and encouraging the growers to go for it.

On average, farmers obtained 3.75 tons per hectare by using hybrid seed of Aush rice in last fiscal while 2.57-ton and 1.29-ton yieldsrespectivelyby using High Yielding Variety (HYV) and local varieties.

Per hectare yield was 3.70 tonsfromhybridAmon while 2.79 tons from HYV and 1.52 tons from local varieties.

Similarly, per hectare yield of Hybrid Boro is 4.91 tons and HYV 4.02 tons and local varieties 1.85 tons.

Maize cultivation went double;however, 100 per cent maize seeds used in the country belonged to hybrid segment.

In FY 2020-21, maize was cultivated on 5.64 lakh hectares of land that yielded 56.63 lakh tons while per hectare yield was over 10 tons.

However, five years back in FY 2015-16, maize was cultivated on 3.96 lakh hectares of land yielding only 27.59 lakh tons. Per hectare yield was 6.96 tons at that time. In just five years, maize production turned twice.

On the other hand, farmers produced 197 lakh tons of vegetables in 9.35 lakh hectares of land in FY 2020-21.

In fiscal 2015-16, vegetableswere cultivated on 8.31 lakh hectares of land yielding152.64 lakh tons.

Per-ton vegetable yieldwent up by 2.65 tons in the last five years.

According to Bangladesh Seed Association, around 45 per cent vegetable seeds arefirst generation hybrid varieties.

Some 23 per cent hybrid vegetables, 84 per centhybrid rice and 2 per centmaize seeds are locally produced. This suggests that the country still relies on import of 77 per centof vegetable seeds, 16 per centof rice seeds and 98 per centof maize seeds.

Some 98 per cent of maize seedsare imported from India and Thailand, said the association.

“Our weather is not suitable for maize pollination. The same is true for vegetables. So import dependency is high, explained Fakhrul Islam, executive director of Bangladesh Seed Association.

“Dehumidified storage system is important. We are lacking in it,” he suggested.

In his positive reaction to The Business Post,Jiban Krishna Biswas, executive director of KrishiGobeshona Foundation, said it is good that farmers are getting high yield from hybrid farming, but at the same time,the government has to be careful about the availability of seeds.

“Bangladesh Agriculture Development Corporationshould work on the hybrid varieties invented by the Bangladesh Rice Research Institute and Bangladesh Agriculture Research Institute (BARI). BADC should focus on the development of locally invented varieties, not on business only,” he suggested.

Asked about ensuring seed supply BRRI Principal Scientific Officer ParthaSarathiBiswassaid: “We are a research body. We are not tasked with supplying seedsto farmers. BADC can do it.”

In this regard, MdMostafizurRahman, director (Seed and horticulture) of BADC, told The Business Post this year they produced 1,300 tons of hybrid Boro seed against the demand for 10,000 tons, and are going to produce hybrid seeds of Amon and Aush very soon.

“Apart from rice, we are working on the hybrid seedsof brinjal, pumpkin, bitter gourd and tomato invented by the Bangladesh Agriculture Research Institute and are also looking for more varieties of vegetables,” he pointed out.

BARI invented seven varieties of rice, four for Boro reason and one each for Amonand Aush season respectively.

Against the national average of 4.91 tons, per hectare yield ofBoro varieties invented by the Bangladesh Rice Research Institute ranges from 5.7 tons to 9 tons, Amon 3.5 tons to 4.5 tons and Ausharound 6 tons.

Bangladesh Agriculture Development Corporation (BADC) has dehumidified storage facility having a capacity of 10,000 tonswhere hybrid seeds can be stored.

However in FY 2019-20, the corporation supplied only 662 tonsof hybrid Boro seed, 15 tons ofhybridAmon, 45 tonsof Maize and 77 tonsof vegetables seeds. It produces hybrid seeds from imported varieties.

Private sector holds over 95per centmarket share

The private sector supplied95.68 per cent of hybrid rice seeds, 99.28 per cent of hybrid maize and 99 per cent of hybrid vegetable seeds in FY20, according to the latest available statistics of the Ministry of Agriculture.

According to Bangladesh Seed Association, the country hasa Tk1,149.4-crore market of hybrid rice, vegetables and maize seeds.

Of the amount, hybrid rice seedsaccount for over Tk3,75crore, vegetablesover Tk 2,51crore and maizeTk210crore.

For years farmers prepare seedsall