BAGERHAT — Shobuj Shikder, 34, of Panbaria village in Kachua upazila of Bagerhat, spent 17 years away from home looking for work. He returned to his village last year, invested just 10,000 taka and started growing mushrooms on the veranda of his house. The crop has changed his life. He now earns about 20,000 taka a month.
The son of Ishaq Ali Shikder, Shobuj is from Panbaria village in Badhal union of Kachua upazila. He left home in 2007 in search of work and spent 17 years in Dhaka and other parts of the country.
After running a pharmacy business for a time, he decided last year to try something new. He took a 12-day specialized course at the Mushroom Institute in Savar and began growing mushrooms. Using just a 12-cubit strip of his veranda, he launched the “Messrs Saiba PO-T variety mushroom” project. He is now cultivating 622 mushroom bags at a time and producing two to three kilograms of mushrooms a day on average.
Shobuj sells the mushrooms at the local market for 400 taka per kg and powdered mushroom for 3,000 taka per kg. He ships orders across the country using Daraz, Pathao, Scoot Express and other courier services. He also sells 500-gram spawn packs for 25 taka, 1-kg packs for 50 taka and 2-kg packs for 100 taka.
Rafiqul Islam, a farmer from Panbaria, said Shobuj is an inspiration for the village. “No one used to think you could do so much sitting on a veranda. Now many young men in the village are interested in growing mushrooms,” he said.
Local woman entrepreneur Shirin Begum said Shobuj is earning well from mushroom farming. “If government training and support are made available for such initiatives, many more people will come forward and become self-reliant,” she said.
Shobuj said he started with just 10,000 taka and now earns 15,000 to 20,000 taka a month on average. “If I get government support, I will be able to farm on a larger scale. My dream is big. I want to grow this small balcony project into a major industry one day,” he said.
“I want many more unemployed young men to take up mushroom farming and become self-reliant. With government help, I want to spread this farming into every home in the country,” he added.
Sheikh Naimur Rashid Likhon, an officer of the Kachua agriculture extension department, said mushroom farming is now a profitable agricultural venture. “It requires very little space and money. What Shobuj is doing is truly commendable. We want more young people to take up such ventures. The agriculture office is always at their side,” he said.
Mushrooms are nutritious and demand for them is rising in the market. Shobuj’s initiative will undoubtedly be a major inspiration for others, the officer said.
He added that anyone who wants to start a similar venture can contact the agriculture office for training, advice or any other support.
বাংলায় মূল প্রতিবেদন পড়ুন · Read the original Bengali report