Potato trading can be now done online. This has been made possible with the launch of an online trading platform today at the auction yard in Phuentshogling.
The details about the potatoes, including its prices will be given online, which the traders can access from anywhere in the country. This means farmers will no longer have to wait for long at the auction yards.
The farmers will also not have to segregate potatoes, one of the important cash crops for many farmers in the country, before bringing it to the auction yard. A potato grading machine will do that.
The machine will segregate potatoes into four different sizes. The machine was operated as a pilot project last year. Its launch today is a result of the success of the pilot project.
The Food Corporation of Bhutan (FCB) collaborated with the Royal Securities Exchange of Bhutan (RSEBL) to come up with the platform. It is part of the commodity market initiative aimed at encouraging more traders and commercialization of the country’s agricultural sector.
“This online service will help farmers fetch better prices and save time,” said Tshering Dorji, the Agriculture Marketing Manager of the Food Corporation of Bhutan (FCB) in Phuentshogling.
“The online service will eliminate the middlemen system because it will directly connect the producers with the ultimate buyers,” said Dorji Phuntsho, the Chief Executive Officer of RSEBL.
He added the online platform is mainly aimed at ensuring proper price discovery process and standardization of agricultural produce. He says the platform is not only limited to potatoes.
“We are exploring other high value products such as cardamom, and probably in the future, we would like to incorporate cordyceps as well,” said the RSEBL CEO.
