Maize grains could possibly be among the export items

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MAIZE, after having been introduced to Bangladesh found in the 1970s, crawled in advance gradually to seize lands showing a noticeable trend since 2003. Due to an augmenting poultry sector, demand of its grains is certainly on a rise making its cultivation profitable a lot more than that of rice. Farmers had taken this profit-advantage using considerably more lands under their disposal. The current production style hints at its future export potential either as feed or meal.

Being truly a C4 crop, maize offers two to three folds yield productivity compared to the of C3 crops such as for example rice and wheat. It could be grown in a varied environment. Its grains are being used as poultry, livestock and seafood feeds creating a ready industry for the farmers. The green straw is ideal for organizing storable and palatable silage to cater the crisis period of livestock feeds.
 
Due to such production benefits, farmers have adopted this crop widely during the last decade which has previously occupied some lands of boro, wheat, pulses and oilseeds. This crop is also staying grown in kharif-1 season (summer time) on lands which usually could have remained fallow. Such occupation is certainly powered by the soaring demand of feed mills for maize grains.

Maize’s expansion was additional conspicuous between 1990 and 2000. In line with the Bangladesh Bureau of Figures, Bangladesh reaped 117 thousand tonnes of maize grains from 29 thousand hectares of territory in the growing period of 2002-03 which climbed to 3288 thousand tonnes from 401 thousand hectares in 2017-18.

An elaborated research, countless wide open pollinated varieties and hybrids of maize have already been released by the Bangladesh Agricultural Research Institute. Importing seeds of large yielding exotic hybrids, along with uninterrupted way to obtain production inputs, also contributed to the expansion of this crop.

Before 2016-17, wheat was the next highest grain making crop after rice. Its acreage rose steadily showing the highest area of 882 thousand hectares in 1998-99. The crop’s spot fell to 331 thousand hectares in 2018-19. Such a decline primarily attributed to the increased temperatures due to climate change. Further, extreme strike by the blast disease during or after 2014-15 posed the crop to come to be of lesser fascination to farmers.

On the other hand, although maize was initiated substantially later than wheat in the 1970s, due to a steady ascent of the poultry industry, the crop gained a faster drive. As per 2018-19 BBS info, its region has been 35 % a lot more than that of the wheat. As such, maize possessed a gigantic leap departing wheat production behind.

Not merely the yield productivity, but also a shorter life span has manufactured this crop unique to be quickly fitted in the prevailing cropping devices. Maize has additional disease resistant capacity weighed against rice and wheat. Its seeds contain more protein and lower glycemic index and, as such, are more advanced than rice possibly for the diabetics.

In Bangladesh, farmers grow maize mainly in the cropping habits of T.aman-maize-mungbean, T. aman-maize-aus rice, T.aman-potato-maize and T.aman-Rabi crops-maize. In Rabi season that begins from November and carries on up to April, maize competes with boro, wheat and additional Rabi crops; while in Kharif-1, with aus and jute. However, summer months maize production is certainly constrained with the regular storms that cause harm and lodging of the plants reducing the yield.

Since mid-2000s, maize’s growth level in Kharif-1 (summer time) was greater than that of Rabi (winter months). The info of 2013 revealed that about 18 % of maize lands in the summer season contributed only 16 per cent to its total creation which may be related to lesser option of sunlight because of cloud go over. Planting in wider rows of 60cm can help you grow many short duration crops as intercrops in the same plot.

Maize production is principally concentrated found in the central and northern parts of Bangladesh, even so leaving its expansion choices in other parts. Specifically in the south, huge amount of area remains fallow following the harvest of T.aman which might be taken under maize’s cultivation. However, its production in that area could be constrained by the lack of irrigation facility which should be solved before mass intro of its production for the reason that area.

According to BBS info, during 2002-03 developing season, maize region was about 29 thousand hectares against 707 thousand hectares of wheat. Thereafter, wheat region slowly but surely dropped down, while that of the maize rose. In 2016-17, maize spot was 390 thousand hectares against that of wheat of 416 thousand hectares. During 2017-18 growing time of year, maize’s acreage was 401 thousand hectares against that of wheat (351,000 hectares).

Statistics about the acreage and development of maize is as yet unavailable from the Bangladesh Bureau of Figures after 2017-18. USDA, indexmunda and knoeema approximated the area to come to be 331 and 520 thousand hectares in 2018-19 and 2019-20 respectively, reckoning the particular productions to become of 3500 and 4500 thousand tonnes. The Division of Agricultural Expansion projected the acreage and creation to come to be nearing or above 550 thousand hectares making over 5100 thousand tonnes in 2020-21.

In line with the Feed Sectors Association of Bangladesh, the total annual demand for feed in the united states is 6-8 million tonnes having to import 1-3 tonnes to focus on the burgeoning demand. As its acreage possesses been expanding quickly, it may be anticipated that in forseeable future, Bangladesh will become self-more than enough in this crop, with a good surplus. This paves a way to develop export-oriented feed industries in Bangladesh.

The presently produced maize grains are being used exclusively as feeds which are from yellow grained varieties while white grains are trusted for human consumption in many of the African, Central American and South American countries. Despite their house production, some of these countries need to import white maize grains from the USA or somewhere else. Bangladesh could have this advantage in future.

Source: https://www.newagebd.net

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