Formulate sound marketing policies for potato traders

Every business is a form of human service and is connected with principles and ethics; but throughout the ages and across countries, it has been seen that many traders engage in dishonest practices in the hope of making extra profit. In the end, they only harm themselves. Instead of profit, they face loss. This not only harms them personally but also affects the public, because every commodity is linked to a section of people.

According to news published in the media on Monday (27 October), a trader named Hafiz Uddin had stored 2,143 sacks of potatoes in a cold storage, hoping to sell them later at a higher price. But his hopes were shattered. The potatoes he had bought for Tk 2.1 million were later sold for only Tk 296,000, causing him a loss of Tk 1.8 million. Having invested all his savings in the potato business, he is now destitute.

It has also been learned that Hafiz Uddin is not the only trader to have faced such ruin in the potato business. Everyone who stored potatoes in cold storage has suffered losses this year. In just one cold storage at Sadullapur in Gaibandha, the total loss amounted to 104 million taka. A total of 460 farmers and traders had stored potatoes there. Many of them are now on the verge of ruin after losing their capital. The affected traders are furious because the government did not take any initiative to buy potatoes. The same situation prevails among farmers and traders in Munshiganj and Naogaon.

If they had released the potatoes to the market earlier instead of storing them for long, people could have bought potatoes at lower prices. That would have saved money for consumers and prevented such heavy losses for the traders. In their greed for extra profit, they have brought ruin upon themselves. This loss is not limited to a few traders; it is a loss for the entire state. The government is also responsible for this. There is no proper policy in our country regarding production, distribution and price regulation. As a result, traders take advantage of the situation through irregular practices and syndicates. It has been seen before that onions and ginger were hoarded to raise prices, but later those onions and ginger rotted in the warehouses.

In this time of crisis for potato growers and traders, the government should have taken more urgent steps. It is learned that although the government had fixed the price at Tk 22 per kilogram, in Munshiganj potatoes are being sold at only Tk 8 per kilogram. Thus, farmers and traders are losing Tk 16-18 per kilogram. Under this situation, 10 billion taka worth of potatoes stored in cold storage, Tk 5.4 billion worth that rotted, and 4.95 billion taka lost from being forced to sell at lower prices from home—all together the total loss from potatoes this year amounts to 20.35 billion taka. Because of this, more than 100,000 people, including 70,000 farmers and traders in Munshiganj, are in distress.

If the government had purchased potatoes in time as needed, the traders might not have suffered these losses. Next year, farmers may lose interest in producing potatoes, leading to a shortage in the country, and as a result, potato prices will soar uncontrollably. This is a prime example of a disordered market system. Therefore, we want the government to stand beside the potato traders and to formulate an annual policy for potato-growing farmers, hoarders, and traders.