With oranges fetching better prices in the market, mandarin exporters in Samtse are looking forward to doing good business this season. What more? The yield and quality of the crop have also improved this time, favouring the exporters to boost their business.
Dadi Ram Adhikari, 49, an orange exporter from Dorokha has been into the orange export business for more than two decades now.
With the onset of export season, Dadi Ram is seen frequenting the orange depot and helping his workers place the crop into crates.
He looks happy seeing that most oranges are sealed in the crates, all set to be exported to Bangladesh.
“Compared to the past years, this year everything seems to be in our favour. We have good production and also there is high demand from Bangladesh. Furthermore, the market price of orange is good this time,” says Dadi Ram Adhikari, the owner of Adhikari Export Orange Depot.
He adds that due to these reasons, it has been a win-win situation for all the parties involved in the orange business.
While the growers have earned good income, exporters like him are also fetching higher returns.
“I believe farmers are happy this season as they fetched higher prices for oranges. Earlier, they could only fetch about Nu 300 for 80 pieces. They fetched Nu 380 for the same this year,” continues Dadi Ram Adhikari.
However, the situation was different last year. Owing to the poor quality of the crop and the pandemic, Dadi Ram could export only about 14 truckloads of oranges.
But this time, he is confident of selling about 25 to 30 truckloads of oranges. A box of oranges fetches about Nu 1,500, an increase of Nu 400 from last year’s market rate.
Other exporters echoed similar views. “Compared to other oranges growing districts, oranges grow well here in Samtse. Moreover, Samtse is known for good quality and tasty oranges. And this year, the orange yield has been good and as an exporter, we have are extremely happy,” shares Lhap Tshering, another orange exporter in Samtse.
The only three orange exporters in the district have finished buying almost all the oranges from the various growers in Sibsoo and Dorokha Drungkhag.
They have already exported 35 truckloads of oranges and with two more weeks left for the export season to end, they are hopeful of selling 60 to 65 truckloads more to Bangladesh this time.
Passang Dorji, Samtse
Edited by Pema Lhaden
