After the British period, 36 mustard oil mills were built in Chaumuhani of Begumganj Upazila, the only commercial center of greater Noakhali (Noakhali, Laxmipur, Feni). In 1972, 'Meghna Oil Mills' was established in Maheshganj area of Chaumuhani with only 12 pairs of machines and 22 workers. At that time the mills were managed by Ali Azam Bhuiyan. He died after managing the mills for 35 years, his son Mohiuddin Ahmed Bhuiyan Mahin then took charge of the company in 2007. After taking charge for about 12 years, the company was closed due to shortage of raw materials and workforce during the Covid-19 period. After that, he could not turn around due to financial crisis.
Mohiuddin Ahmed Bhuiyan Mahin, director of Meghna Oil Mills, said that after taking charge of the mills in 2007, he started producing mustard oil with 26 pairs of oil extractor machines. About 80 workers work in his company. Initially 2500 kg of mustard oil was produced and sold daily. Around 2010, the demand for mustard oil started to decrease due to the increase in demand due to the promotion and low price of soybean oil in the market. At that time, the daily production came down to an average of 1500-1700 kg per day. In 2017 it came down to 600-700 kg. In 2018, the production of oil decreased to only 400 kg. When the Coronavirus infection started around 2019, the import of mustard started to decrease. At the same time, workers were laid off as production fell. The mill was closed down in the middle of 2019.
He also said that the demand for mustard oil among people increased at the end of 2021 after learning about the damage caused by soybean oil to the human body during the Coronavirus pandemic period. However, though the demand among people increases, the production of oil does not increase. We have repeatedly failed to relaunch Meghna Oil Mills based on customer demand. Economic crisis, non-availability of low interest loans, government incentives and shortage of manpower have failed to launch after multiple attempts. He called for the government's cooperation and arrangement of bank loans to open mustard oil mines to prevent major health and physical diseases.
It is known that after visiting the Chaumuhani market and talking to the owners of mustard oil mill, the clattering sound of thousands of pairs of wooden mills was once like a rhythm to the people of Chowmuhani. The mustard oil mills there used to be bustling with workers and buyers. Before and after independence almost all the markets of the country were dominated by Chowmuhani's mustard oil. Although famous for quality and meaning, today, all the mills there have lost their traditions. Before the war of liberation and after independence, manually extracted mustard oil of Noakhali's commercial center Choumuhni was famous for its quality and value in the country's market. Among them were Sri Govinda Oil Mills, Sri Durga Oil Mills, Adarsh Oil Mills, Moti Oil, Gaur Oil Mills, Navayug Oil Mills, Meghna Oil Mills, Sri Gopal Oil Mills, Dalia Oil Mills, Ajmer Oil Mills, Ganesh Oil Mills. , Yamuna Oil Mills, Balb Marka Oil, Popular Oil Mills and Rokeya Oil Mills. This industry, which has been flourishing for about 50 years, is now almost extinct. Due to intense competition with soybean oil, shortage of capital and raw materials, the mills are closing. Since 1990, 32 mustard oil mills have been closed due to various crises including ownership change.
Currently operating in Chaumuhani are Navayug Oil Mills, Balb Marka Oil, Rokeya Oil Mills and Shree Gopal Oil Mills.
They also said that if the mills are running, it is not possible to produce that amount of oil as per the demand of the customers. According to the information provided by them, currently the demand of mustard oil in the district is more than 15 thousand kg per day. However, compared to that, the production in the area daily is about 3500 kg of mustard oil, which is only one fourth of the demand. As a result, the demand of the district has to be met with oils from different parts of the country including Dhaka, Feni and Laksam. At present, the oil produced from the mills is being sold at 230 Tk per kg. Although there is a demand of Tk 10.5 crore of oil per month, only Tk 2.5 crore of mustard is being produced in four mills. With the help of the government, the entire demand of mustard would have been possible with the oil produced in the mills of the district, apart from this; they think it is possible to sell the oil produced there outside the district.
Mill people say that after the 80s, the demand for mustard oil started to fall out of the market due to the flashy advertisements and widespread promotion of soybean oil as safe for health. As a result, the owners gradually lost capital due to losses. In addition, the shortage of raw materials, capital and labor also became evident. Also, many people have closed their establishments after being harassed due to BSTI's license suspension and exorbitant electricity bills. Also, compared to the demand of raw mustard, only 20 percent is produced in the country, the remaining 80 percent of raw mustard has to be brought from outside countries including France, Canada, China, Russia, Ukraine. The mill owners say that it is possible to open the closed mills by arranging low interest bank loans through the respective banks.
According to the general consumers, due to advertising campaigns, they used soybean oil last year, but now they have increased the use of mustard oil for major cooking purposes. Even though the price is high, they still trust mustard oil because of its good quality. Mustard oil is healthy as it is produced from raw materials.
Conscious circles say that in addition to increasing the cultivation of mustard in the country's agriculture, the industry will be turned around by the hands of producers and entrepreneurs if government surveillance is increased to keep the oil production mills running.
Deputy Commissioner Dewan Mahbubur Rahman said that mustard oil made from Chaumuhani's mills has been known for a long time. Currently, the demand for mustard oil has increased a lot in the market. Authorities will talk to business leaders and mill stakeholders to help the closed mustard oil mill owners to turn around. Authorities will also assist those who need low interest bank loans.
