Rising Prices of Tomatoes and Green Chillies
The cost of tomatoes and green chillies has gone up, causing regular people to avoid buying them. This has led to plain dishes being prepared with these ingredients. Usually, any curry recipe requires onions.
Expected Increase in Onion Prices
Now, the cost of onions is also predicted to rise. Experts who study the economy say that onions might face a similar situation as tomatoes did. By the end of this month, the prices of onions are likely to go up.
Current Onion Market
In the retail market, one kilogram of onions costs between ₹25 and ₹30. The supply of onions to the main markets in the country is decreasing gradually, causing the prices to slowly rise. For the past four months, the price of onions has been manageable for the common people. The months of August and September usually have fewer onions available due to the time between planting and harvesting. Therefore, the supply decreases and prices go up during these months. Onion harvesting begins in October, which increases the supply and reduces the spiciness of onions. This cycle happens every year.
Decrease in Onion Production
During the current year’s kharif season, farmers grew fewer onions because prices weren’t promising for a few months. The area used for cultivation decreased by 8 percent, and the expected onion yield is likely to be 5 percent lower. This year, the total onion production is expected to reach 29 million tonnes. Traders also report that this year’s onion cultivation isn’t as good as last year’s.
Impact of Weather on Onion Supply
Additionally, heavy rains destroyed onions that farmers had stored last month. This reduced the supply to Lasalgaon market, which is the biggest onion market in Asia. In anticipation of future price increases, some buyers bought onions in advance and stocked them. As a result, the stored onions that were supposed to last until the end of September were used up quickly this time, decreasing the storage period by 1-2 months. There’s a possibility that even the little remaining supply will run out by the end of this month.
Reasons for Price Increase
All these factors combined indicate that the price of onions will rise in the retail market by the end of this month. Crisil, a research organization, also recently studied this situation and predicted that prices will go up even more in September. Due to the shortage of onion supply, the prices are expected to reach between Rs 60 and Rs 70 per kilogram next month, as stated by the port.