Arya News - Madhupur farmers use excessive hormone to maximise profit during Ramadan.
DHAKA – Pineapple farmers in Madhupur upazila of Tangail have been using chemicals to enhance the fruit’s size and hasten ripening process in hope of maximising their profit by grabbing the market early amid Ramadan season.
Madhupur region is a key hub of pineapple cultivation in Bangladesh.
Due to this ill practice, the harvested pineapples lose the sweet and aromatic flavour characteristic of the fruit, while also becoming a health hazard for consumers due to the blatant use of chemicals.
The Honey Queen variety of pineapples cultivated in Madhupur, locally known as Joldungi, usually arrives in the market during May and June, according to local farmers and officials of the Department of Agricultural Extension.
Rakib Al Rana, upazila agriculture officer in Madhupur, said Joldungi pineapples mainly grow and ripen during monsoon. However, some greedy farmers and traders, seeing the increasing demand for the fruit during Ramadan, have started treating their pineapples with chemicals to hasten the harvest process.
According to DAE in Madhupur, pineapples have been cultivated on 6,630 hectares of land in the upazila this year.
Giant Q, locally called Calendar, is the main variety grown in Madhupur. It has been cultivated on 4,220 hectares, while the Honey Queen variety is being grown on 2,392 hectares and MD variety on 18 hectares.
The Honey Queen variety is harvested in May-June, while the Giant Q variety in July-August.
DAE officials said the government approved use of hormones to slightly quicken the yield process. Hormones are supposed to be used 15 days before and after the budding stage for better flowering and preventing shedding of buds.
However, some local farmers are using the chemicals excessively, disregarding the government directives, in hopes of earning more profits, they added.
A section of local chemical shop owners have encouraged them to use chemicals to increase their sales and profits, DAE officials alleged.
Several pineapple growers in Madhupur, however, said they use chemicals as there is a high demand among buyers for chemically treated fruits, as they stay fresh for longer. Wholesalers do not like buying the naturally organic pineapple, as it spoils quickly after the harvest.
Due to a lack of access to DAE officials, farmers have no choice but to rely on these local chemical shops for their suggestions on how to apply the chemicals, the farmers said.
Chan Miah, a pineapple grower, said, “In one field, all the pineapples do not ripen at the same time. So, sometimes we use chemicals to ensure that an entire field’s harvest can be taken to the market at a time.”
“However, we did not need to use chemicals on the pineapples this year as the fruits ripened on the orchard naturally due to favourable weather conditions,” he claimed.
Physicians and nutritionists said that hormones are commonly used in ripening fruits worldwide and that those are not harmful if used in the right amount.
However, some local pineapple farmers are using high doses of the growth hormones to increase their yields, which is harmful for human organs, they added.
“Regular consumption of chemically treated fruits can cause various diseases and is very harmful for pregnant women,” said Dr Jahangir Alam, an associate professor of Tangail Medical College Hospital.
Prof Abdullah Iqbal, a teacher at Bangladesh Agriculture University in Mymensingh, said most of the farmers are unaware of the harm that can be caused by chemically treated fruits.
“So, it is necessary to raise awareness against this ill practice,” he added.