Low profits pushing farmers away from legume cultivation

Farmers in various areas of the country are gradually shifting away from legumes in favour of other crops as lentils and pulses have become less profitable now.

Legume cultivation in four districts -- Bogura, Joypurhat, Pabna and Sirajganj -- decreased 19 per cent from nearly 60 lakh acres in fiscal 2016-17 to around 49 lakh acres in the current year, according to data from the Department of Agricultural Extension (DAE) office in Bogura.

The situation is similar at the national level as farmers grew various pulses and lentils on 10.11 lakh acres in 2014-15 while it was 8.75 lakh acres in 2018-19, data from the Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics shows.