Many farmers are leaning towards cultivation of sweet potato in the region, including char (riverbed) areas, as the crop has a high demand with a potential to fetch a good market price, reports BSS.
Low production cost and simple cultivation process have attracted the growers to its farming, sources said.
Anwar Hossain, a farmer of Char Mazar Diar in Paba upazila, said he has cultivated the sweet potato on 45 decimals of land this season spending about Tk 3,500.
He has already earned Tk 17,500 by selling his produce and is hopeful of earning more in the remaining period of this season.
Sonarul Islam, another grower of Char Asariadaha village in Godagari upazila, said he has brought 30 decimals of land under the cultivation of the crop. He has earned Tk 12,200 so far from the sale of the produce.
The Department of Agriculture Extension (DAE) has set a target to grow around 125,000 tonnes of sweet potato from around 8,050 hectares of land in the country's northwest region during the current season.
The sources said the DAE and other government and non-government organisations concerned have taken necessary measures to make the sweet potato cultivation a success in the region.
Additional Director of DAE Mustafizur Rahman told BSS that the sandy lands and the riverbeds are suitable for the sweet potato cultivation. So, people of the Ganges and Brahmaputra basins and the remote char areas grow this crop widely besides consuming it.
The production cost of the crop is very low, as it requires less fertiliser and irrigation, he said, adding that the nutritional value of the crop is similar to rice and its taste is delicious.
It contains vitamin A and C as well as minerals, which are absent in rice. It is also enriched with protein, carbohydrate, calcium, iron, carotene and vitamin B1 and B2, which are essential for human health.
An adult person needs 13 grams of vitamin A a day, which a single sweet potato can provide.
Agriculturist Rahman mentioned that people of the Philippines and Papua New Guinea consume sweet potato as a substitute for rice while it is widely consumed in the USA and Japan.
He also mentioned that different types of tasty foods like halua, payesh, bread, biscuit, pastry and cake could be made with the processed indigenous potato.
"If we can make people develop a habit of consuming sweet potato, the nation can reduce its dependence on rice to a greater extent," he said, calling for launching awareness campaign in this regard.
In this context, he said importance should be given to training and loans for the farmers.
ATM Rafiqul Islam, deputy manager of Barind Multipurpose Development Authority, said there is an enormous scope of boosting both acreage and yield of the indigenous crop through the best uses of natural resources.
