Mobarak Hossain, 60, a farmer from Kurigram’s Phulbari upazila, was seen standing in Balarhat market with a sack of freshly harvested betel nuts.
He said he had harvested six “pon” of betel nuts -- each containing 80 nuts. A “pon” of betel nuts was fetching Tk 400, he added.
“Without these betel nut trees around our homes, we would have been in serious trouble,” Mobarak said, lamenting over heavy losses incurred this season in paddy, potato and maize cultivation, despite rising fertiliser, seed, and diesel costs.
While the region’s traditional crops have turned unprofitable, the steady yield from betel nut trees planted decades earlier is keeping farming families afloat.
Mobarak’s experience reflects that of many farmers across Rangpur, Lalmonirhat and Kurigram districts.
Dhaneswar Chandra Barman, 65, said the earnings from betel nuts harvested from around 70 trees around his home paid for his children’s education in previous years.
“But this year, I am using it simply to feed my family because I have suffered losses from potato and paddy cultivation,” he added.
Betel nut trees, once matured, require near-zero production costs and minimal maintenance -- mostly organic fertiliser and water -- and continue producing for 35-40 years.
As such, at the current market prices of Tk 300-600 per “pon”, betel nuts have become an exceptionally reliable crop.
For Shamsul Alam of Kurigram, who manages nearly 3,000 trees across eight bighas, annual earnings reach Tk 25-26 lakh against maintenance costs below Tk 2 lakh.
Wholesaler Abdul Hakim at Rangpur City Market said annual turnover exceeds Tk 2 crore, with over a hundred wholesalers like him operating across the region. Fresh nuts are purchased from farmers between April and August, then preserved underground before nationwide distribution.
According to the Department of Agricultural Extension (DAE), the Rangpur region now hosts approximately 55 lakh betel nut trees and nearly 1,600 commercial orchards -- each spanning 4-20 bighas. Annual production exceeds 300 crore nuts.
Sirajul Islam, additional director of the DAE in Rangpur, said betel nut cultivation has become a profitable commercial enterprise due to low cost, conducive local climate, and good market prices.
