According to the Ministry of Agriculture data, Bangladesh has seen a boom in vegetable exports, worth $180 million until April of the current fiscal year compared to $164 million until the same month last fiscal year.
Earlier this week, Agriculture Minister Dr Abdur Razzak had said that Bangladesh has immense opportunities to export vegetables and fruits, particularly to European and Middle-Eastern countries. The minister said that in the last fiscal year, $850 million worth of goods were exported from the agriculture sector, out of which $164 million was from vegetable exports.
Vegetable exporters and farmers noted that the cost of vegetables is high in many other countries, making it more convenient for those nations to import vegetables from Bangladesh.
Bangladesh Fruits, Vegetables and Allied Products Exporters' Association Joint Secretary Gobinda Chandra Saha said this soaring export volume is a result of collective coordination from farmers to exporters. He also said that most of the summer vegetables are exported from Bangladesh between July and August.
Md Iqbal Hossain, an exporter of M/S JP Enterprise, told dhakatribune.com: “We want to increase the export of vegetables. Cargo is a big barrier for exports. In the last meeting with the Agriculture Ministry, authorities have assured us they will resolve laboratory and carriage facilities.”