25/02/2013 (Daily Star) - A large number of palm growers in eight districts under Rangpur division are now at a loss as they can neither sell the fruits nor extract oil from them when many of the trees have started yielding after nurture for over three years.

Authorities during the then caretaker government in 2008 encouraged farmers to make palm gardens while many NGOs, who imported palm seeds from Malaysia to produce saplings, launched campaign to popularise it in the northern region, said sources at the Department of Agriculture Extension (DAE).

A good number of farmers engaged in palm cultivation with hope to earn high profit as edible palm oil is produced from the nuts.

NGOs like Green Bangladesh, Swanirvar Shyamol Bangla, Bokhtiar Agro Products and several local nurseries sold about one million palm saplings to farmers for Tk 500-Tk 300 each to make about 400 palm gardens in the region.

Around 3000 individuals also planted about one lakh palm saplings at their house premises, said sources.

After nurture for three to four years, palm saplings grew into mature trees and around half of the trees have borne palm nuts in bunches, much to the delight of the farmers.

But the delight soon turned into disappointment.

“My trees are now yielding palm nuts but I cannot sell them for want of buyers and I do not know how to extract palm oil from the nuts," said Abdul Halim, 40, of Mekor Tari village in Sadar upazila, who made a palm garden on one bigha (30 decimal) of land after collecting saplings from a nursery four years ago.

Fulen Barman, 45, a farmer at Bhatgaon village of Thakurgaon Sadar upazila, who made a palm garden on his 1.5 acres of land three years ago, said, "I nursed the palm trees with great care and now they are producing good quantity of palm nuts. But there is no palm oil extracting machine in the area and we do not know any way to utilise the nuts.”

"Officials of an NGO named Green Bangladesh persuaded me to make a palm garden at my homestead, saying that I would become rich within a short time as they would purchase nuts for high prices. But the NGO officials are yet to make any contact although my palm trees are yielding nuts,” said Abdul Gaffar of Collegepara village in Jaldhaka upazila.

Hundreds of farmers in Mekor Tari, Koimari, Sholmari, Putimari and Bherbheri villages of Nilphamari district, Baura, Patgram, Kaliganj of Lalmonirhat district, and Islampur, Horinarayanpur, Molani, Baliadangi, Jagannathpur and Horihorpur villages of Thakurgaon district have similar tales to tell.

Contacted, Shafiur Rahman, divisional manager of Green Bangladesh, said, "Our NGO distributed about five lakh saplings to make palm gardens in Rangpur division. A few other NGOs also distributed large amount of saplings as this project aiming at producing palm oil and a number of other commodities bears bright prospect.

"Wastage of some fruits, especially at the initial stage of yield, is not uncommon in case of palm nuts. At this stage, we are suggesting farmers to extract oil from the nuts through squeezing.

“We will observe the situation till 2015. We have to see whether the palm nuts contain sufficient oil. If the quality, quantity and size of the palm nuts are up to the mark and they do not drop down before maturity, all preparations are ready to set up two big palm oil extracting plants in Chittagong and Dinajpur," he added.

Deputy director of DAE in Rangpur regional office said they are aware of the situation and have contacted with the head office in Dhaka seeking direction in this regard.

He suggested farmers a local method to extract palm oil by boiling the palm nuts and then pressing or rubbing the boiled nuts with hands to get oil as a way to reduce the present wastage of palm nuts.