Farmer Turns Rice Losses to Sugar Cane Profits, Earns Lakhs
Photo Collected
A farmer in Bangladesh has transformed her livelihood by switching from rice cultivation to sugarcane farming, dramatically increasing her annual income from a meager profit to hundreds of thousands of dollars.
Sandhyamani Chakma, 65, a resident of the Khamarpara area in Rangamati Sadar Upazila, found that traditional rice farming on her approximately 2.5 acres of land yielded minimal returns, often offset by high production costs and water scarcity. However, a shift to sugarcane cultivation approximately nine years ago has revolutionized her financial situation.
বিজ্ঞাপন
Chakma now earns around 400,000 Bangladeshi taka (approximately $3,400 USD) annually from selling fresh sugarcane juice directly from her small roadside shop. Her son, Bitan Chakma, noted that previously, rice cultivation brought in about 30,000 taka, with 18,000 taka spent on production costs, leaving little profit beyond their own labor.
The success of Sandhyamani Chakma’s venture has not gone unnoticed. Her farm is situated near the Rangamati-Khagrachari road, where her small, tin-roofed shop has become a popular stop for passing pedestrians, travelers, and tourists. Many purchase bottled sugarcane juice to take with them.
বিজ্ঞাপন
Chakma’s transition to sugarcane farming began in 2017 after learning about the crop from the Department of Agricultural Extension. She received support and guidance from the department, as well as equipment like a pump and a juice-making machine from the Chittagong Hill Tracts Development Board’s Sugarcane Research Center. She now exclusively uses the sugarcane grown on her farm for her juice business, which operates for nine months of the year.
Local representatives have praised her success. Praveen Chakma, Chairman of the Sapchhari Union Parishad, highlighted Sandhyamani Chakma’s long-standing commitment to sugarcane farming and her widespread recognition within the union due to the constant stream of customers at her shop.
According to the Rangamati District Agricultural Extension Department, sugarcane is currently cultivated on 393 acres across the district. Shahnaj Parveen, the Upazila Agriculture Officer for Rangamati Sadar, stated that the soil in the hilly region is highly conducive to sugarcane cultivation and that many farmers are increasingly showing interest and finding success in the crop. The department is actively providing various forms of assistance to encourage more farmers to adopt sugarcane cultivation.
0%
0%
0%
0%
