Patna, Aug 31 (IANS) Farmers in Bihar's Nalanda district are happy that potatoes grown by them through organic farming will be exported to Russia, an official said Friday.
R.K. Sohane, director, Bihar agriculture management and extension training institute (Bameti), said a Delhi-based export firm, Indian Potato Ltd, is keen to purchase one lakh tonnes potatoes from the Nalanda farmers for export to Russia.
"It is a big development for the hundreds of farmers growing patato and will encourage farmers engaged in growing other crops and boost the state's agriculture," Sohane told IANS here.
Bihar is the third-largest potato producing state after Uttar Pradesh and West Bengal.
Nalanda, the home district of Chief Minister Nitish Kumar, is the leading potato producing district in Bihar with farmers growing the crop over more than 27,000 hectares.
Early this year, a young farmer of Darveshpura village in Nalanda set a world record, harvesting 72.9 tonnes of the tuber per hectare through organic farming.
Sohane and M.L. Choudhary, vice chancellor of Bihar Agriculture University in Bhagalpur, along with the officials of the firm held talks with farmers during their visit to Nalanda early this week to buy potatoes from them.
"The export firm is keen to purchase potato grown through organic and non-organic methods from farmers in Nalanda," Choudhary said.
Sohane said officials of the export firm were impressed by the varieties of potatoes shown to them by registered farmers growing potato in Nalanda. "The firm is likely to finalise the deal with farmers soon," he said.
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