Commercial grass cultivation turns money-spinner in Bogura
Some 10,000 people in Bogura’s Sherpur upazila is involved in commercial grass cultivation
Even the once barren or roadside fallow land is now contributing to the domestic economy thanks to the technology of modern farming and Bogura'sSherpur upazila is a fine example of that, where some 10,000 people are successfully cultivating grass.
Apel Mahmud, a resident of Mohipur area of Sherpur upazila, cultivated Napier grass on seven bighas of land, which he leased at Tk17,000 per bigha. After leaving his profession as a carpenter he is now a full-time farmer. Besides rearing five cows of the Friesian breed, he said grass farming is one of his key sources of income.
The 34-year-old youth sells grass almost every day at a school field in the Mohipur bazar area, where a grass market sits around 3pm daily.
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"I was a carpenter for 8-10 years. I could run my family but there was no peace in the work. So, I started cultivating grass by leasing 2 bigha land with saved money," Apel said, adding that he sold about Tk2 lakh worth of grass by the end of the year.
Apel then started rearing five cows of Friesian breed. For the last five years, he has been cultivating grass and rearing cows. He is now cultivating grass on 7 bigha land.
Apel said, rearing cows and growing grass together is very convenient as he is able to provide natural feed for the cows.
According to the upazila animal resources department, there are at least 2,000 cow rearing farmers and more than 2,75,000 cows in Sherpur. At least 1.5 lakh litres of milk are being produced from this upazila every day and the market value of the produced milk is around Tk2 crore.
Farmers are opting for grass over ready-made feed for the cows. As a result grass cultivation in the upazila has increased to over 2,000 acres of land.
Helal Hossain, a farmer of Jamtala village in Mohipur area, said he cultivates Napier grass on 2 bigha land every year as it is more profitable than any other crop.
"It costs Tk5,000-7,000 to cultivate grass on one bigha land and in contrast they sell Tk80,000-1,00,000 worth of grass per bigha," said Helal.
"At the same time, there is no fear of natural disasters in grass cultivation. There is no risk so to speak. Besides, labour cost is low while the demand is also good," he added.
Garidaha area's Abdul Hamid, who has been cultivating grass on 4 bigha land for 18 years, said the demand for Napier grass has increased manifold.
He started cultivating grass on fallow lands as nothing else can be cultivated there. Then due to the increased demand, he started cultivating grass on more lands.
Abdus Salam, a resident of Ulipur in Sherpur upazila, buys grass from farmers in Mohipur market and sells it to farmers. He also has six cows of Friesian breed.
He said a big circle has grown around grass trading in Sherpur. At least 200 people are involved in it.
Grass cultivation is also increasing across the district, says the Bogura Animal Resources Department.
In the fiscal year 2021-22, Napier grass was cultivated in 575 acres of land in the district from 448 acres the fiscal year before. Prior to that grass was cultivated in only 127 acres of land.
JannatunMahal, deputy assistant agriculture officer of Kagail Union, Gabtaliupazila said the demand for grass cultivation is increasing in all areas due to various facilities. With growing demand, part-time grass farms have also developed in various areas in the district.
Abdur Rashid of Mohipur in Sherpur buys grass for Tk1,000-1,200 per day for 10 cows. He said, as the price of cow feed has increased he feeds his cattle grass.
"I believe the demand for grass will only increase," he said.
Farmers say, the raw material for cow feed needs to be imported and due to instability in the world market, the prices of all products have increased, especially the price of cow and chicken feed.
Feed producers said, the process of extracting crude oil from the rice bran leaves de-oiled rice bran, which is a raw material for feed meal and currently it's production is stopped in the country.
Most of the 17 mills in the country stopped rice bran oil production after the government slapped an export ban on rice bran oil on 24 May. This is also one of the reasons why feed prices as well as the demand for fodder grass are increasing.
Sherpur upazila Animal Resources Officer MdRaihan said, "Grass is a natural cow feed which contains all ingredients of a balanced diet. It helps boost milk production in cows and buffaloes. Besides, various studies have found grass is more beneficial for cattle feed than grain feed."
He also said that the hormone responsible for the reproduction of cows and buffaloes is called Estrogen and grass boost the production of this hormone.
"The upazila Department of Animal Resources is encouraging farmers to cultivate grass. The farmers are also given grass seed and training for the cultivation," he said, adding the upazila is producing Tk100 crore worth of grass every year.
