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Bangladesh 3rd in global vegetable production

Abu Khalid, Senior Correspondent |
Update: 2016-01-29 05:13:00
Bangladesh 3rd in global vegetable production

DHAKA: Bangladesh Agricultural Research Institute (BARI) said Bangladesh ranked third in vegetable production but it remained in the lower position in intake. 

According to the World Health Organization (WHO), a healthy individual should take 220 grams of vegetable daily of which Bangladeshis intake only 70 percent of need.

The concerned and the experts has asserted that Bangladesh will lag behind from other countries in vegetable intake if the yearly wastage is not marginalized, not increase of cultivation and production and change of people’s food habit to intake more vegetable.

Chief scientific officer and head of Vegetable Departmental of Bangladesh Agricultural Research Institute (BARI) Dr Golam Morshed Abdul Halim told banglanews that becoming third in the ranking of producing vegetable, it is a great success for Bangladesh.

But in vegetable intake, Bangladesh ranked in lower level. To improve the situation, vegetable intake habit of people has to be changed, he added.

 Dr Golam Morshed Abdul Halim also said that 35 percent of the vegetable is wasted in the country.

Pro-Vice Chancellor of Shere Bangla Agricultural University said, ‘We produce a lot, but we don’t get to eat.  How do we enjoy success in producing vegetable then? We need to increase awareness about taking vegetable.’

He also opined that the amount of cultivation and cultivable land must be increased as well.

Department of Agricultural Extension (DAE) has informed that in the fiscal year of 2015-16, the government has set target the production of 143,47,000 Metric tons of vegetable from the 8.05 lakh hector cultivable land.

DAE source further said right now more than 150 types of vegetables are being cultivated in Bangladesh.

The Agronomists’ opined that beside expanding research over different varieties of vegetables, new types of vegetables should be spread to the farmers.

Agronomist Dr. G Halim said, “We mostly concentrate over taking meat, fish and other non-vegetarian food.  We ignore that the vegetable is an important factor for the health as well. Vegetables provide all kind of vitamins”.

“There is no alternative of vegetable to supply necessary nutrients to the human body”, the agronomist opined.

BDST: 1615 HRS, JAN 29, 2016
AIK/RS

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