Net-house potato farming boosts income, entrepreneurship in Rajshahi region
Around 750 seed-growing farmers have achieved satisfactory yields using the net-house method last year.
Potato farming through the net-house system is emerging as a lucrative venture in the Rajshahi region, including the Barind tract, providing higher income opportunities and encouraging entrepreneurship among local farmers and youths.
The modern method, which focuses on multiplying disease-free tissue-culture potato seeds, is helping farmers secure better yields and profits by ensuring quality planting material, despite challenges like storage and price fluctuations.
The controlled environment of net houses protects young potato plants from pests and diseases, boosting the production of foundation seeds and reducing dependence on imported seeds.
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Mijanur Rahman Kazi, general secretary of the Seed Potato Growers Cooperative Society, told BSS that around 750 seed-growing farmers have achieved satisfactory yields using the net-house method last year.
"The method is gaining momentum across the region, helping farmers increase income while ensuring sustainable production," he said.
Private entrepreneurs are increasingly investing in mother potato-seed production locally, replacing reliance on conventional seeds.
Commercial farmers like Abu Hena Mostofa Kamal of Mollikpur village under Paba upazila have expanded their acreage and number of plantlets in recent years due to higher returns. Kamal has transplanted 4,750 plantlets, while Mustafiz of Ghipara village has 2,110.
Other farmers, including Nur Alam of Khanpur, Masum of Parjunpara under Mohanpur upazila, and Ali Afzal of Jamalpur village under Bagmara upazila, reported satisfaction with their output and financial gains. Alam highlighted that the expansion of tissue-culture technology could solve the breeder seed shortage and increase production efficiency.
Abdul Wadud, Additional Director of the Department of Agriculture Extension (DAE), said demand for tissue-cultured plantlets is rising sharply, while Prof Monzur Hossain, a pioneer in the technology, emphasized its potential to make potato farming a profitable business for local farmers.
This Rabi season, around 37.72 lakh tonnes of potato are expected from 1,56,620 hectares across eight districts of the division. In the Rajshahi Agricultural Zone, the target is 14.05 lakh tonnes from 58,240 hectares, while in the Bogra Zone, 23.67 lakh tonnes are expected from 98,380 hectares.
Abdul Wadud said DAE has taken all necessary steps to achieve these production targets.
