Young Kerabari farmers drawn to commercial strawberry farming

By Our Correspondent,Urlabari, Sept. 2: Young farmers from Kerabari Rural Municiplaity-3, Bhogateni of Morang, who do not produce enough to eat throughout the year from traditional crops, are now engaged in commercial strawberry farming.

The fields that were cultivated with maize, wheat and millet until three years ago are now covered with strawberries full of new colours and sweet taste. The villagers have just planted traditional crops like millet, maize and wheat only to save seeds.

Local Pooja Magar introduced strawberry farming in the village three years ago with the help and support of her agricultural engineer brother Nirmal and community leader mother Purna Kumari.

The strawberry plants planted in pots out of her wish have now changed the identity of the village.

Pooja said that now there is no house in the village that does not plant strawberries. 

She said that the training conducted by the Hilly Rural Development Organization (HRDO) with the support of Mennonite Central Committee Nepal and Bread for the World, Germany showed her the way to start strawberry farming.

"The organisation not only provided training, but also provided concessional loans. The same loan taken at 5 per cent subsidy interest made my commercial strawberry farming worthwhile," she said.

Pooja prepared the saplings from the plants she had grown in the pot. She purchased the additional saplings from the nursery as well.

She said that the she has planted strawberries in about 3 ropanies of land with the involvement of her whole family.

After making good income from the sale of strawberries by her, strawberry farming is now a trend in the village.

"There is no one in the village who does not raise goats, pigs, and cows. Therefore, there is no need to use chemical fertilisers for strawberry farming. As it is an organic product, there has been no problem of market to sell the product so far. Traders buy the products reaching their doorsteps," she said.

She said that traders are buying strawberry at Rs. 450 per kg from their homes, she informed.

According to her, she has so far invested a total of Rs. 100,000 in strawberry farming, including a 5 per cent soft loan of Rs. 70,000 and a self-investment of Rs. 30,000.

From the investment of Rs. 100,000, she has earned an income of more than Rs. 50,000 in three years.

Pooja's family has also raised a cow and 30 goats to manage fertiliser for strawberry farming.

Similarly, 22-year-old Mohan Magar is also following Pooja Magar's a successful strawberry farming.

After not getting the opportunity to study at the campus, he turned to farming with hard work and courage. 

He has planted strawberries in one ropani of land at present.

Strawberries, which begin to grow from November, continue to grow continuously until May. 

He said, "We can get five times more profit than the income from corn, millet, and wheat cultivation."

Mohan, who has produced 300 kg of strawberry so far, has earned Rs. 135,000 from the sale of strawberry in the first year itself.

Ganga Shrestha has also been attracted to strawberry farming commercially from the income she got in the first year.

Ganga Shrestha, who started farming last year, said that businessmen do not buy small berry. 

"That is why I have started making alcohol (liquor) from small grains," she said.

Due to growing strawberry cultivation, many people have now started calling Bhogateni the 'Strawberry Village'. 

The residents of the hilly village of Bhogateni have set a good example of not having to leave home and family and go abroad to earn money if you want to start a new business in your own country, rather than dreaming of foreign employment.