May 13, 2010
Nepalese grain production drops
Nepal faces a significant fall in overall grain production, as both climate conditions and cultivation methods are seen to be the main causes of this fall.
According to Ministry of Agriculture and Cooperative (MoAC), grain production has decreased by 4.3% to 7.76 million tonnes this year. Total grain production was 8.11 million tonnes last year. Area of cultivation has also contracted by 1% this year. Irregular monsoon and insufficient irrigation are blamed for the low production.
The second major crop apart from rice is corn production, which has declined by 4% contracting the total production from last year's 1.93 million tonnes to 1.85 million tonnes this year.
MoAC has also identified six factors -- irregular monsoon, poor irrigation facility, unavailability of fertiliser in cultivation season, shortage of hybrid seeds, settlement in cultivation areas and low investment in research and development -- for low grain production.
