Home ›› 09 Apr 2022 ›› Front
Bangladesh meets only 0.2 per cent or 50,000 tonnes of its organic fertiliser demand from commercial production, according to the Department of Agricultural Extension (DAE).
It says factories that are in commercial operation can produce 50,000 tonnes of organic fertilisers annually while farmers individually produce 14.3 lakh tonnes across the country.
“Each hectare of land needs around three tonnes of organic fertilisers per year. Thus, 82 lakh hectares of net cropland in the country need 2.46 crore tonnes of fertilisers to keep the soil fertile,” Sayed Rafiqual Amin, additional director (inputs) of the DAE’s field service wing, told The Business Post.
He said increasing the use of organic fertilisers was a matter of practice and preference as well.
“Farmers have to believe that organic fertilisers are needed besides chemical ones for sustainable production. But they are not used to spending on organic fertilisers.”
He also said the government plans to increase the use of organic fertilisers by 35 per cent by 2030.
The country’s first organic fertiliser producing company, Annapurna Agro Services, got its registration in 2006 from the DAE. There are now 62 registered organic fertiliser factories in the country.
Agro giants like Kazi Organic Fertiliser, Advanced Chemical Industries (ACI), Pran-RFL Group, Northern Agro Services, and Paragon Group have also started organic fertiliser production. ACI obtained registration for two production units while Kazi Organic Fertiliser did so for six, according to the DAE.
Producers said the demand for such fertilisers is huge and they are increasing production. FH Ansary, president of ACI agribusiness division, said small producers are not interested in marketing due to high costs while the sector does not receive any government incentives.
He said ACI is outsourcing a huge amount of organic fertilisers from other small factories and marketing those under its own brand.
“Though the availability of organic fertilisers is very low, its demand is growing fast and big producers are showing interest as they already have a marketing network,” he also said.
ACI alone produces 20,000 tonnes of organic fertilisers each year, Ansary added.
Echoing him, Abu Taher, senior manager and in-charge of Kazi Organic Fertiliser, said organic fertiliser production costs are high. “Quality maintenance using high-end technology and the availability of raw materials are important factors for production.”
His company produces 25,000-30,000 tonnes of organic fertilisers per year. They are setting up two more plants, which will take their annual production capacity to 40,000 tonnes.
“We are struggling to keep the supply available against high demand as people are taking an increasing interest in organic things,” Taher said.
He said a farmer can save money by using less chemical fertilisers and then use the amount to buy organic ones. “He can thus produce more crops at the same cost. The crops will be fresher and the farmers will get higher prices in the market.”
Taher said farmers earlier were interested in using organic fertilisers only in potato fields but their use has now become diverse.
“The majority of farmers using organic fertilisers grow vegetables. Watermelon, tomato, and eggplant cultivators are vastly using such fertilisers,” he said.
Soil quality and demand for organic matter
The soil needs 5 per cent organic matter while less than 2 per cent is not acceptable at all. But the amount of organic matter in the country’s soil is less than 2 per cent on average.
There are 1.16 crore hectares of land, including cultivable, river, the Sundarbans and others, in the country that have organic matter deficiency. This accounts for 79 per cent of total land areas in Bangladesh.
According to a report by the Soil Resource Development Institute, there is a very severe organic matter deficiency in 11.8 lakh hectares of land, severe deficiency in 28.6 lakh hectares, moderate deficiency in 35.3 lakh hectares, and light deficiency in 33.9 lakh hectares.
“Soil can preserve water longer if organic fertilisers are used, and this can save water usage. All 16 soil nutrients are present in organic fertilisers. Without adequate organic matter, soil loses fertility every year and production decreases,” Habibur Rahaman Chowdhury, additional director (extension and coordination) of DAE, said.
Cheaper solution
Kazi sells a 40kg sack of organic fertiliser at Tk 525, which means the price of per kg fertiliser is Tk 13.
However, a 25kg sack is sold at Tk 415, which means the price of per kg fertiliser stands at Tk 16.6. A 1kg packet is sold at Tk 55.
Taher said the price of a 1kg packet is higher due to packaging costs.
Annapurna’s 2kg packet is sold at Tk 90.
Organic fertiliser prices are lower than that of chemical ones for farmers, who pay Tk 16 for per kg Urea, Tk 22 for per kg TSP, Tk 16 for per kg DAP, and Tk 15 for per kg MOP.
23 among 62 factories renewed registrations
Among the 62 registered factories, 23 have renewed their registrations. Among them are Pran, ACI, Kazi, Paragon, Northern Agro, Farah Agro, Carew and Company (Bangladesh), Rash Agro Enterprise, Mimpex Agrochemicals, Progga Agro Enterprise, Alo Agro Process Industries, Mandal Traders, Mohammadi Fertilizer, Apex Biofertilizer, and Krishibid Upakaran Nursery.
“Some organisations obtained registrations but did not renew those. Besides, some have stopped production after failing to compete with big producers,” Naznin Khanom, additional deputy director (input) of DAE, said.
From hazardous waste to asset
Poultry farmers once had problems with manure as its disposal was the main concern. The government tried to address this problem by imposing the mandatory set-up of biogas plants on big poultry farms.
But the initiative failed due to environmental pollution and plant maintenance problems. Now this manure is turning into asset as big poultry farms are setting up compost factories.
“Cow dung, poultry manure, and domestic waste have methane gas. If this gas is not processed while making organic fertilisers, it will kill crops instead of increasing production. That is why small producers are not compliant due to a lack of modern technology,” Taher said.
