Local scientists develop 60 high-yielding varieties of 27 spices

Scientists of the Spices Research Centre (SRC) in Bogura have developed nearly 60 high-yielding varieties of 27 spices and 150 production technologies since its establishment in 1995, with spice production rising and import dependence falling in the country.

The SRC scientists said the country has advanced in producing daily-essential spices such as onion, garlic, turmeric and ginger, but production can be increased further if locally developed varieties and technologies are used adequately.

The government is therefore putting emphasis on research to develop new varieties, and raising production of these crops would make it possible to meet the necessary demand, they said.

The scientists said spices are an important part of agricultural products. Alongside the main crops, spice cultivation helps raise farmers’ incomes and plays a big role in advancing the overall agricultural economy.

Rising population and increasing food demand have led to the conversion of land previously used for spice cultivation into foodgrain production. This has reduced domestic spice output, creating a supply deficit that must be addressed through imports.

SRC officials said spices are currently produced on 4 lakh 48 thousand hectares of land in the country, yielding about 48 lakh 78 thousand metric tonnes. After storage losses of 25 to 30 per cent, actual output stands at about 34 lakh metric tonnes against demand of 47 lakh 88 thousand metric tonnes, leaving a deficit of about 13 lakh metric tonnes.

Talking to BSS, Principal Scientific Officer Dr Md Masud Alam of the SRC at Shibganj in Bogura said the centre is the country’s only specialised spice research institute operating under the Bangladesh Agricultural Research Institute (BARI) and the cradle of spice research in Bangladesh.

The varieties and technologies developed there have spread across the country, he said.

Dr Md Masud Alam said farmers are playing a pioneering role in modern spice cultivation by using various high-yielding varieties and improved technologies developed by the SRC. Farmers have achieved major success in ginger cultivation in sacks and in cultivating improved varieties of turmeric and onion, he said.

Mentioning that activities of the Bogura SRC and its regional centres and sub-centres have been strengthened through BARI, Dr Alam said quality high-yielding seeds, training and modern cultivation methods (such as ginger cultivation in sacks, irrigation, fertiliser, and disease and pest management) are being delivered to farmers.

He said various incentives are being provided and research is under way to encourage cultivation of import-dependent spices in the country such as cardamom, cinnamon, bay leaf, radhuni and cumin.

He added that preservation methods and technologies have been developed for various spice crops (onion and garlic powder, onion paste, ginger paste and powder, garlic paste, and green chilli paste and powder).

In addition, various processed products of alubokhara (pickle, jam, chutney, bar, morabba and others) have been made. Through these, it has been possible to reduce post-harvest and storage losses of various spice crops to a large extent, he said.

The Principal Scientific Officer also said the SRC, operating under BARI, needs to be strengthened with more modern laboratories and an adequate budget.

As onion and garlic are perishable, he said, it is urgent to build suitable cold storage or preservation facilities so that produced spices do not rot and fair prices are ensured throughout the year.

He also thinks that agricultural loans on easy terms and regular field-level training need to be arranged for spice growers.

Stressing import substitution, he said zones suitable for commercial cultivation of spices such as cumin, cardamom and cinnamon should be created in the country and private entrepreneurs should be given incentives.

He said it is very urgent for the government to take initiatives to ensure supply of germplasm of valuable spices, including clove, cardamom, cumin, cinnamon, nutmeg, mace, vanilla and saffron.

Project Director Md Masudur Rahman of the Project for Expansion of Improved Spice Varieties and Technologies said 63 thousand metric tonnes of chilli had to be imported in the 2025-26 fiscal year.

Despite production exceeding demand, imports are needed because necessary storage arrangements are not in place, he said.

He said chilli dryer machines are being provided through the project, mentioning that green chillies are being dried and ground with these machines.

If green chillies cannot be preserved, he said, there will be no option but to import.

Masudur Rahman said farmers are being encouraged to grow chilli in the Bangla months of Chaitra and Baishakh to make up for the shortage of green chillies in the monsoon.

He also said mother gardens of cinnamon, black pepper and bay leaf are being created, through which farmers can collect saplings of these spices from horticulture centres.

He said that to make up for the ginger shortfall, the project is spreading technologies for ginger cultivation on hill land and ginger cultivation in sacks on the plains.

The most ginger in the country is produced in the hill districts of Rangamati, Bandarban and Khagrachhari. About 40 per cent of the total demand is produced in these three districts.
Large quantities of ginger are also produced in Rangpur, Tangail, Bogura, Lalmonirhat, Nilphamari, Kurigram and Sirajganj districts.

Speaking about cumin cultivation, Masudur Rahman said, “In 2025, we took an initiative to cultivate cumin on 50 bigha of land. As farmers grew cumin successfully, an initiative has been taken this year to cultivate this spice on 130 bigha of land. If this succeeds, cumin cultivation will increase widely in future.”

About Tk 900 crore to Tk 1,000 crore is spent on cumin imports every year.

Masudur Rahman said the Padma basin area has mainly been chosen for cumin cultivation. Cumin is being cultivated in Kushtia Sadar, Godagari in Rajshahi, Faridpur, Shibganj in Bogura, Jhenaidah Sadar, Ishwardi in Pabna, and Jibannagar and Damurhuda in Chuadanga.

Director General Md Abdur Rahim of the Department of Agricultural Extension (DAE) said air flow machines are being distributed among farmers to increase onion preservation in the country.

This year, 15,000 machines have been distributed among farmers. Earlier, another 11,700 machines were distributed. As a result, onion did not have to be imported this year and will not have to be imported.

He said effective initiatives have been taken for production of ginger, summer tomato and monsoon chilli. Work is under way to produce monsoon-tolerant chilli varieties to stop chilli imports in the monsoon.

A technology for ginger cultivation in sacks has been developed to reduce imports. As a result, ginger imports will fall in the coming days. To increase summer tomato production, soil quality in different districts of the country is being tested and a list is being prepared.

The DAE director general also said, “The soil and weather of our country are not very suitable for producing the spices we import from abroad as hot spices. Even so, we have started cumin cultivation on a small scale”

“But more research is needed for cardamom and cinnamon production. However, we are continuing to work on new technologies and improved varieties to reduce spice imports,” he added.