Green chilli prices soar despite production boom

The prices of green chillies have surged sharply, reaching Tk 300 a kg on Saturday despite a notable increase in domestic production.

In the span of just three days, the prices have risen by Tk 100-120 a kg, making the essential cooking ingredient increasingly unaffordable for low-income consumers.

Green chilli prices often go up and down during the summer and the rainy seasons, and such seasonal volatility in prices is common.

In 2022 and 2023, retail prices even hit a record high of Tk 800-1,000 a kg, despite growing production in both summer and winter seasons.

According to the Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics (BBS), chilli production rose from 0.492 million tonne in 2020-21 to 0.748 million tonne in 2023-24 - an increase of 52 per cent. Chilli production in the summer alone increased by over 85 per cent, from 0.1 million tonne to 0.186 million tonne during the same period.

Despite this growth, prices are still high, especially during the rainy season, says vegetable vendor Jubayer Alam at Sher-e-Bangla Road in Mohammadpur in the city. Prices go up in this season because heavy rain affects chilli farming, he said, adding that big traders and syndicates in different districts and in Dhaka are also responsible for raising prices.

Director of the Department of Agriculture Extension SM Sohrab Uddin said attractive market prices in summer encourage many farmers to grow chillies. But heavy rainfall which is common from May to September can damage crops, he said. He noted that farmers in Rangpur, Bogura, Mymensingh, and Jashore have doubled their chilli production in the last half a decade.

Assistant Director of the Department of Agricultural Marketing (DAM) TM Rashed Khan said that while farmers are receiving only Tk 80-100 a kg, the chillies are selling for Tk 240-250 a kg in Dhaka wholesale markets and Tk 260-300 a kg in retail markets.

Vice-President of the Consumers Association of Bangladesh (CAB) SM Nazer Hossain said that big traders and importers are making huge profits. Chillies are also being imported, and the import cost is a maximum of Tk 120 a kg. Like many other commodities, the green chilli market has no proper rules or regulations, allowing traders set prices at will.

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