Food Company Buying 3,000 Tonnes of Wheat, Government Fixes Support Price of Wheat
May 9, 2020 | Investopaper
Food Management and Trade Company Limited has started purchasing wheat from farmers in two districts of the Terai. The company said that the procurement process has started in two of the four districts and preparations have reached the final stage in the other two.
Netra Prasad Subedi, chief executive officer of the company, has said that the wheat has been procured from farmers in Kailali (Dhangadhi) and Bardiya (Rajapur) districts since Baisakh 23. According to him, the procurement process has not started in Banke (Nepalgunj) and Rupandehi (Bhairahawa) due to various reasons. He informed that there have been some problems in the procurement process in Nepalgunj due to COVID-19 and the process will be started in Bhairahawa in a few days.
Information Officer Sharmila Neupane informed that the company has allotted quota in four districts for the purchase of 10,000 tonnes of wheat in Dhangadhi and Rajapur and 5,000 tonnes in Nepalgunj and Bhairahawa. According to her, 1,550 quintals of wheat has been procured in Dhangadhi and 961 quintals in Rajapur.
The cabinet meeting held on Baisakh 12 had approved the support price of wheat at Rs 3,015 per quintal as recommended by the Ministry of Industry, Commerce and Supplies. The ministry has allocated Rs. 2,319 for production cost, Rs. 231 for transportation cost and Rs 463 as profit to farmers. For the first time, the government has set a support price for wheat, the company said.
According to Information Officer Neupane, Rs. 90.5 million has been allocated for wheat procurement under the company’s regular program. 1,265 tonnes of wheat was procured from farmers in the fiscal year 2074/75 and 381 tonnes in 2075/76.
As per the company, the average price per quintal at that time was up to Rs 2,700. The wheat purchased by the company will be sold in remote districts as well as in Kathmandu as per the demand of the consumers.
