Unprecedented demand pressure on rice for Rohingyas and expatriates: Food minister

Food Minister Sadhan Chandra Majumder said unprecedented market pressure and demand for rice is high, driven by the food needs of more than one million Rohingyas and the large number of expatriates who have returned home to Bangladesh.

After visiting the Shantahar Central Storage Depot in Bogura on Thursday, the food minister also said the government has decided to import rice to ease the pressure and protect the interests of consumers and farmers.

At present, the government's rice stock is 17 lakh tons. With the ongoing Boro procurement program, eight lakh tons of rice has already been collected. The rice procurement time has been extended till 31 August, by when rice procurement is expected to be completed. Further steps are being taken to stabilise the rice market. Besides taking action against illegal stocking and hoarding, private sector rice imports are also underway. Everyone will reap the benefits soon, he added.

The minister said, "Before I took charge of the food ministry, rice was imported privately in the country tax-free and anyone could import. The supply of imported rice in the market was higher and the price also went down. As a result, domestic farmers had no choice but to sell paddy at a low price in keeping with open market prices. Soon, marginal farmers lost interest in paddy cultivation and started cultivating other crops."

He added that a 62.5% tax was imposed on rice imports to ensure that farmers were not harmed and to discourage imports. The main objective was to re-engage farmers in paddy cultivation and to increase the country's home grown food stocks through local procurement. The present government is now benefiting farmers by procuring paddy from them at reasonable prices that can sustain farmers.

Notably, end consumers did not benefit from the just-ended Boro season. People are having to buy rice at higher prices in the market. One has to spend up to Tk52-53 to buy one kilogram of coarse rice. To regulate and manage the market, the government has decided to allow the private sector to import rice. However, the amount of rice to be imported has not been finalised yet.