Sk Shoaib, SAU
Golden Perilla is known as an edible oil crop that has been adapted in the climatic condition of Bangladesh by the reputed researchers of Sher-e-Bangla Agricultural University (SAU). The research team tried to get adaptability of Perilla from 2018 under the intensive care and supervision of Dr HMM Tariq Hossain, a Professor at Agronomy department. Recently, National Seed Board (NSB) has given it’s recognition to Perilla as ‘SAU Perilla-1’.
Perilla is cultivated in south-east region of Asia including South Korea, Japan, Chin, Nepal, Vietnam and Some regions of India. It’s a member of Lamiaceae family and the scientific name of Perilla is Perillafrutescens. Dr Tariq started his research with Korean Perilla among the three (3) varieties.
Dr Tariq said, “In 2007, I conducted some research with Perilla at a primary level. Then, in 2018, research continued again by Kaiyum Mojumdar under my supervision. We tried to find out the proper time of cultivation, systematic way for extraction of oil at low cost and to ensure quality of oil from Perilla.” He also gave importance to Perilla as a beneficial edible oil that contains about 50-65% omega-3 fatty acid which gives resistance to the disease of heart. It also has a positive power to increase the immunity, and control high pressure and diabetes.
Kaiyum said that it can be cultivated from the middle of July to October at low cost. They have been able to collect oil from Perilla seed about 40-42% ensuring that it can be collected easily. The research team also discussed with Bangladesh Post about the diseases of Perilla. If Perilla crop is infected by disease, it can be controlled with the use of proper pesticides as well as insecticides. The researchers expect that Golden Perilla will be cultivated commercially in Bangladesh which will fulfil the demand for edible oil.
