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The government has ordered the deputy commissioners (DCs) of several districts to ensure that cold-storage owners put the key pieces of information, including prices and stocks, on digital displays in visible places, sources said.
The DCs of Munshiganj, Rajshahi, Bogura, Rangpur, Dinajpur, Khulna, Cumilla, and Pabna were asked to implement the order urgently so that consumers can buy stored potatoes and other perishable items at affordable prices in the lean season.
The move is expected to avert abnormal price hikes and any artificial potato crisis in the market.
The names of products, stored amount, prices (per kg), storage dates, release dates, volume of released items, prices during release, and remaining amount after release have to be displayed digitally in visible places or in front of cold storages.
The decision came following skyrocketing potato prices last year. Stored potato prices reached an all-time high of Tk 80 a kg, which put consumers in a fix. The previous record was in August 2021 when prices reached Tk 65-70 a kg.
The delayed harvest of early varieties, growing demand for seeds, market manipulation by cold storage owners and traders, import halt, and production data mismatch were the key factors behind the high price, said market observers.
Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics said potato production was 10.6 million tonnes in FY24, while Bangladesh Cold Storage Association claimed it was nine million tonnes.
The prices of potatoes and other vegetables are now affordable. Potato is retailed at Tk 20-30 per kg.
Potato farmers have already faced losses due to lower prices as their production cost is higher than both wholesale and retail prices of the widely-consumed item.
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