Carrot harvesting goes on in full swing in Naogaon. Photo: BSS

NAOGAON, Feb 9, 2025 (BSS) - The harvesting of Carrot is going on in full swing in Manda upazila of the district as excellent yield surfaced during the current season.

The Department of Agricultural Extension (DAE) office said the weather of the district is quite suitable for Carrot cultivation and due to continuous dense fog and absence of long-term cold wave and high-quality seed, there has been a bumper harvest of Carrots in the northern district.

However, the maximum carrot cultivation in the district is in Manda upazila. Farmers have increased their interest in carrot cultivation in the district due to less labor and cost, higher production and good prices.

According to the DAE, carrots have been cultivated on 600 bighas of land in the upazila this season. Of this, this crop is cultivated more in some nearby villages including Bilkarilya, Kusumba, Badalghata, it added. 

There is a possibility of producing at least 72 thousand maunds of Carrots from the upazila which market price is about Taka 3.5 crore.

Hanif Uddin Mandal, a farmer from Bilkarilya village of the upazila, said, "This time I have cultivated Carrots on 15 bighas of land spending Taka 14,000 to 15,000 per bigha. The production of Carrot per bigha is 130 to 140 maunds. I will have a profit of Taka 40,000 to 45,000 from per bigha of land, excluding expenses." 

Nizam Uddin, a carrot farmer from Kusumba village, said, "Last year, I made a good profit by cultivating Carrots on six bighas of land. This year, I have cultivated Carrots on a total of 15 bighas of land, spending Taka 14-16 thousand per bigha."

He is expecting 110 maunds to 120 maunds Carrot from one bigha of land.

At the beginning of the season, one kilogram (Kg) of Carrot is sold at Taka 30-35. Accordingly, a maund is being sold at Taka 560 to 640.

Currently, the supply in the market has increased as everyone is harvesting and the price has come down slightly. Now it is being sold for Taka 14-16 per kg. The profit after expenses is Taka 35,000 to 40,000 from per bigha of land. 

Abul Bashar, a farmer from Bilkarilya village, said like every year, Carrot cleaning work is going on at different points in the village with the help of nine machines. 

At least 2,000 maunds of carrots are processed at these points every day. After that, they are supplied to different areas of the country including Naogaon, Rajshahi, Chapainawabganj and Bogura.

Ishahak Ali Mandal, a farmer from Kushumba village, said many people have cultivated potatoes and mustard in the surrounding land. However, instead of cultivating those crops, farmers cultivated Carrots on their land due to its demand.

Bidyut Hossain, a carrot trader of the upazila, said that carrots are collected directly from the land. Carrots of Taka 5 lakh are being sold every day in the area.

Abul Kalam Azad, deputy director of the DAE, said due to favorable weather conditions, there has been a bumper production of Carrots this year.

Along with the production, the market price is also quite good. Carrots have been cultivated on 270 hectares of land in the district this year. 

The yield per hectare has been 15 metric tons. This time, the DAE is expecting to sell Carrots worth about Taka five crore from Manda upazila.