Aman rice output hits record 1.73 crore tonnes

Farmers harvested a record 1.73 crore tonnes of rice during the last Aman season as they expanded the cultivation of high-yielding and hybrid seed varieties.

Recorded in fiscal year 2025-26, the rain-fed crop was grown on 57.36 lakh hectares, which was 2.19 percent higher year-on-year, according to production estimates released recently by the Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics (BBS).

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The acreage under broadcast and local rice varieties cultivated during the rainy season declined. However, the area under inbred, or high-yielding varieties (HYVs), which account for most of the Aman acreage, increased by 3 percent year-on-year to 46.50 lakh hectares in fiscal year 2025-26.

Hybrid rice acreage grew by 5 percent year-on-year to 3.62 lakh hectares.

"Favourable weather, the use of improved seeds and the proper application of fertiliser have given a boost to Aman production," the BBS said.

Aman rice accounts for roughly 40 percent of annual rice production. Overall output increased by 5.11 percent this year to 1.73 crore tonnes from 1.65 crore tonnes a year earlier, also because of higher yields per hectare.

The surge in rice production during the latest Aman season offset the decline in Aus production in fiscal year 2025-26. Aus, the smallest contributor to rice production, declined by 3 percent, mainly due to reductions in both acreage and yield.

The BBS data showed that total rice production during the Aus and Aman seasons grew by 4 percent year-on-year to 2 crore tonnes.

The agency is yet to release its estimate for Boro, the largest rice crop, harvested during the May-June period of 2026.

In April, the US Department of Agriculture, in its Grain and Feed report on Bangladesh, forecast a marginal decline in Boro production due to lower yields caused by disruptions to irrigation and fertiliser application resulting from fuel and fertiliser shortages.