Abstract
A study was conducted during 2008-11 to assess the status of quality wheat seed production and storage at farmers' level with a view to formulating policy option for improving wheat crop productivity in Bangladesh. In this regard, PRA, FGD and Questionnaire Survey were conducted involving a total of 450 randomly selected farmers of Rajshahi, Rangpur and Dinajpur districts. Of the 150 respondents at each site, 50 farmers were taken from each of large, medium and small categories depending on land holding sizes. Further, farmers' homegrown wheat seed samples were collected from those respondents and tested in the laboratory for their quality determination. From the survey results it was observed that most of the farmers did not apply recommended rate of manure and chemical fertilizers in wheat cultivation. A good number of farmers cultivated wheat crop without applying any cow dung or non-urea fertilizers viz. Triple Super Phosphate, Muriate of Potash, Gypsum, Boron etc. A major part of wheat farmers (55.33%) used their homegrown seeds that were saved from the previous crops raised for grain purpose. Among other seed sources, BADC could supply only 10.0% of the requirement of wheat seed. Farmers stored 45.0%, 40.0%, 9.0% and 6.0% of their wheat seeds, respectively in drums, poly+plastic bags, jute sacs and earthen bags. Any advanced technology of seed storing devices (viz. IRRI seed storage bag, Ferro-Cement bag, Rexin Cocoon, Germax Cocoon, USA Organic Cocoon, GrainPro Cocoon, SuperGrainbags, and GrainShade etc.) still did not reach the wheat farmers. A vast majority (average 89%) of them did not practice any intermittent drying for safe seed storage. The laboratory analyses evidenced that the average moisture content of farmers' seed was 14.3% against the Certified Seed standard of 12.0% and the germination value was 75.2% against its standard of 80%, evidencing that the farmers' homegrown seed was not of good quality. The average gross margins for wheat grain production and seed production through Contract Seed Growers were Tk. 6,917/- and Tk. 31,879/ha, respectively with BCR of 1.18 for grain and 1.70 for seed production, indicating the higher profitability from seed production. The study suggests that to ensure the food security in Bangladesh special attention must be paid for improving the quality of farmers' homegrown wheat seeds and the public & private sectors should be facilitated to produce and market the required amount of quality seeds in affordable price to make them available to the farmers at right time. On the basis of the findings of the study, it may be opted that the current practice of using farmers' homegrown wheat seed should be permitted to continue until the public sectors' strength develops to satisfy the full wheat seed requirement of the country. To this end, there is possibly no means left other than taking effort to strengthen and improve farmers' homegrown wheat seed production system. Therefore, the present study formulated a 9-point policy option guideline of wheat seed production for its implementation in several phases- Seed production, Post-harvest processing, Extension motivational effort and Preparation of farmers' families & other stakeholders.