MONOHORGANJ, Bangladesh — Livestock farmers in Cumilla’s Monohorganj upazila are struggling with a cattle-feed shortage, with many forced to sell off their animals at low prices, farmers said.
Only one boro rice crop is grown in the upazila each year, leaving small holders and commercial farmers alike dependent on rice straw, husk and bran. Because of the single annual harvest, feed runs short by the middle of the year.
Farmers often travel from one area to another to gather animal feed, buying rice straw and husk at higher prices. As a result, many farmers in financial difficulty are selling their cattle and goats below market value.
Md. Parvez Chowdhury, a farmer in Hasanabad union, said he had about 30 cows on his farm. “Because of the feed shortage, I sold off many of them at low prices. Now I have only seven bull cattle left on the farm,” he said.
Rafiquzzaman Hiron, a cattle farmer from Darachhoun village in Khila union, said he had built a new shed planning to set up a cattle farm and had bought several bulls. “Because of the feed shortage, I have been forced to give up the farm,” he said. Villagers raising cows usually feed them rice straw, oil cake, husk and bran. “Boro rice is grown once a year in our area, so many people face a feed shortage. With feed and oil-cake prices high, it is not possible to run a farm.”
Upazila livestock officer Mominur Rahman said people in Monohorganj upazila face floods once a year, leaving many farmers short of feed. “If grass is cultivated on higher land and a grazing area is created on khas land, the feed shortage could be reduced,” he said.
বাংলায় মূল প্রতিবেদন পড়ুন · Read the original Bengali report