No respite for Ctg onion consumers as retail price hovers high

Despite a significant drop in the wholesale price of onions in Chattogram following the government’s decision to allow import of onion from India, consumers are being forced to buy the essential item at a much higher price from the city’s kitchen markets.

Imported onions are yet to be widely available at the retail level, which is currently being sold at Tk 40 per kg in Khatunganj, the country’s largest consumer goods wholesale market.

On Thursday, the same product was being sold at Tk 50-60 per kg by floating vendors, who operate their business in vans, in most areas of the city including Andarkilla, Bahaddarhat and Chawkbazar.

Meanwhile, retailers are still selling local onions at Tk 80-90 per kg.

Kitchen market retailers said they are yet to collect the new onions from the wholesalers as they had already stocked up local onions, which they bought at a much higher price. They will buy imported onions once their stock of local ones is sold out.

Up until Wednesday, floating traders too were selling local onions.

“We buy onions from Khatunganj and sell them in the city by adding Tk 10 per kg to the final buying price. Until yesterday, I had local onions in my stock. I bought those for Tk 75-80 per kg. I brought Indian onions when I finished selling the stock of local onions. Now I am selling Indian onions at Tk 60 per kg as I bought those for Tk 50,” Muhammad Sahabuddin, a floating vendor who conducts business in a van in the Andarkilla area, told The Business Post on Thursday.

Idris Ali, general secretary of the Hamidullah Mia Market Traders Association in Khatunganj, said, “After the importation of onion from India, the wholesale price has decreased to Tk 40 per kg. Buyers are also coming but in relatively less numbers.”

Meanwhile, prices of local onions have dropped after the import began.

“Local onions are being sold at Tk 50 per kg. If the supply increases further, onions will come down to Tk 30 per kg,” said Idris.

Habibur Rahman, owner of Momtaz Store in Chawkbazar kitchen market in the city, said, “Those who are selling in vans do business with small quantities of products. We collect at least two to three tonnes of onions.”

The retailer said he was yet to buy imported onions as he still has a stock of local onions. So I did not collect Indian onions. It looks like onion prices will drop further.”

Kitchen market shopkeepers in Bahaddarhat, Rahmatganj, Agrabad, Badurtala, Muradpur, Oligli in EPZ areas of the city are still selling local onions. But the prices have fallen a bit. Now the domestic product is being sold at 70-75 Tk per kg.

Meanwhile, Khatunganj Trade and Industries Association General Secretary Syed Sagir Ahmad said there is no opportunity to profit by storing onions as it is a perishable product.

“All those who sell onions in Khatunganj are commissioned agents. There are no major importers. But there are middlemen. They are the ones who increase the price. If they are identified, the market will come under control,” he said.

SM Najer Hossain, vice president of the Central Committee of Consumer Association of Bangladesh, corresponded with Sagir Ahmed’s statement.

“Middlemen rule the market of onions imported from India as well. The price of imported onion is only Tk 20 per kg even after adding the customs tax, transport and labour cost fixed by the government. But wholesalers are selling it at double profit. Middlemen are still raking in three times the profit on onion by syndicating it at retail level,” he said.

Najer continued that despite repeated demands by CAB to the administration, they are not monitoring the market regularly.

“Otherwise, the market could not have been this out of control. Everyone is arbitrarily increasing the price to rake in the profit.”

The government decided to stop the import of onions from March 16 to protect domestic production. However, the Ministry of Agriculture allowed the import of onion from India again from last Monday as the price suddenly went out of reach.

The Department of Agriculture Extension has allowed the import of about 6 lakh tonnes of onions in the last three days. These onions have started coming into the market.