Surge in onion prices hits consumers hard

KOCHI The surging prices of onions have hit consumers hard, with one kilogram of shallots costing up to ₹180 in the retail market in Kochi. The price of the essential item has gone up by around ₹50 per kg compared to the previous month, according to traders at the Ernakulam market. The prices of items such as big onions (savala), drumsticks, potatoes, and lemons also remain in the higher brackets, causing distress to household budgets.

Small onions (shallots) were sold at ₹160 a kg at the Ernakulam market in retail on Saturday (November 14), while it was around ₹90 a kg in October. Traders said the item was priced at ₹148 a kg at Oddanchatram in Tamil Nadu, from where they mainly source it, on Saturday. Madurai and Tirunelveli are the other major onion markets that sellers in Kochi depend on. The prices of drumsticks, also sourced from Tamil Nadu, have almost doubled within weeks from ₹80 to ₹140.

Traders have cited low yields as the major reason for the price rise, especially for onion varieties. They said the prices would stabilise only by January going by the previous trends. “The prices of onion see a jump during November-December as farmers are yet to harvest fresh yields. At present, they are selling off the leftovers from the previous harvest, causing a supply-demand gap in the market,” Nazeer, a wholesale onion dealer at the Ernakulam market, said.

K.K. Ashraf, a vegetable vendor at the market, echoed the opinion. He said the prices of items such as beans, carrots, tomatoes, pumpkins, and ladies’ finger have been staying in the range of ₹40-50 for some time. “Lemon has been staying higher at ₹140 per kg for two months, and the ‘njalippoovan’ variety of banana has been at around ₹90 for months,” he added.