Rajshahi, August 4 (V7N) – A sudden and steep decline in the price of betel leaves has created a financial crisis for farmers in Durgapur upazila, where many rely solely on this crop for their livelihood. Betel farming, a traditional practice in the area, has long supported families either through owned land, lease agreements, or sharecropping arrangements. However, the recent collapse in prices has left growers struggling to cover even their basic expenses.
 
Jainal Abedin, a local betel leaf grower, shared that despite a strong harvest this year—achieved through battling persistent rainfall and crop diseases—the market response has been devastating. "Earlier, a bundle of large, premium-quality betel leaves would sell for between Tk 80 and Tk 120. Now, those same bundles fetch just Tk 15 to 35. Medium and thin leaves are going for as low as Tk 2 to 5 per bundle. In many cases, buyers aren’t even showing interest."
 
Muktar Hossain, a farmer from Mariya village, said he has been growing betel for over 20 years, as did his father and grandfather. "I’ve never seen the market this bad. If this continues, we will have no option but to abandon our betel plantations. Right now, we can’t even recover our operational costs, let alone make any profit."
 
Rustam Mia, a grower from Choubaria village, said he leased one bigha of land for Tk 40,000 annually and invested approximately Tk 220,000 in cultivating betel leaves. "At current market prices, I doubt I’ll even be able to pay the lease next year, let alone recover my capital."
 
Montu Mia, a betel leaf trader, noted that the Durgapur upazila hosts markets six days a week in places like Shyampur, Alipur, Gopalpur, Narayanpur, Dawakandi, and Kaliganj. "These markets once saw weekly transactions worth Tk 8 to 10 crore. That volume has now been cut in half."
 
Market insiders warned that if the situation persists and fair pricing isn’t ensured promptly, farmers may abandon betel cultivation altogether, posing a serious threat to the country’s supply of traditional sweet betel leaves.
 
In response, Upazila Agriculture Officer Sahana Parvin Laboni said that about 12.5 hectares of land in Durgapur are currently dedicated to betel leaf farming. "Betel leaf is a long-term crop, so some fluctuation in pricing is expected. Prices tend to dip during the monsoon season due to higher production volumes, but they usually rebound in winter. Farmers may be able to recover their losses then."
 
END/MRA/SMA/