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Onion and potato prices increased further last week after Eid, compounding the woes of the consumers already in dire straits due to the skyrocketing prices of other essentials.
The price of onion, one of the key cooking ingredients, witnessed a significant hike in the last two days as both imported and local varieties of onion were selling at Tk 55-60 per kg, up from Tk 40-50 a kg earlier.
Similarly, the potato price shot up to Tk 35-40 a kg on Thursday from Tk 25-30 a kg on April 21, just a day before the Eid-ul-Fitr.
The Trading Corporation of Bangladesh (TCB) recorded a 25 per cent hike in the onion price in a week while the price is 46-50 per cent higher than a year ago.
On the other hand, the price of potato showed a 21 per cent hike in a week while the existing price is 76 per cent higher than a year ago, said TCB.
The onion price has been rising at the retail market at a time when the farmers are struggling to recover their investment let alone making a profit.
Just a few days back, farmers were selling the spice at Tk 16-22 a kg in Rajbari, Faridpur, Gopalganj, Natore, Bogura and Pabna, said TM Rashed Khan, assistant director at the Department of Agricultural Marketing (DAM) under the agriculture ministry.
Most of the farmers in Faridpur and Pabna regions completed selling their crop before Eid, he added.
Belyaet Hossain, a spice trader at Shyambazar in Dhaka, said the closure of trucks and pickup vans after Eid caused a surge in prices of the spice to some extent, though things are getting normal slowly.
The wholesale price of local onion at Shyambazar is Tk 35-38 a kg while retailers are realising much higher, he said.
Mr Hossain said the import cost has also increased as the foreign onion was traded at Tk 42-45 a kg at Shyambazar.
However, groceries and spice vendors in the kitchen markets claimed the price of the item increased by Tk 10 a kg at the wholesale in the last two days, resulting in a jump in the retails.
Bangladesh annually produces 2.6 million tonnes of onion against a demand for 2.8-3.0 million tonnes. The expectation is to get above 3.8 million tonnes of onion in the current cropping year, according to the agriculture ministry.
On the other hand, the potato price has increased at a time when the harvest is still going on in many places.
Azad Khan, a potato trader in Nilphamari, said production of the carbohydrate-rich item fell in the Rangpur, Rajshahi and Dhaka regions, forcing traders to stock the item in a large amount.
He said the newly harvested cardinal variety is selling at Tk 14-16 a kg at the farm level while big traders are buying it at Tk 17-18 a kg, aiming to preserve the item in the cold storage facilities.
The Department of Agricultural Extension (DAE) also confirmed that potato production might fall this year amid a decline both in acreage and productivity.
It said 0.45 million hectares came under potato farming while the yield per hectare is a maximum of 19.6 tonnes this year - the acreage and productivity were 0.47 million hectares and 22.75 tonnes, respectively, last year.
The country could get a maximum of 9.0 million tonnes of potato this year which was 10.01 million tonnes last year, said DAE officials.
Consumers Association of Bangladesh Vice President SM Nazer Hossain said the commerce ministry should look into the matter seriously to keep prices of these two essential items within a rational level.
If appropriate initiatives are not taken, prices of the items can increase and bring back the situation that took place in 2019 and 2020, he said.
In November 2019, the onion price jumped to an all-time high of 270 a kg in the country while the potato price jumped to a record Tk 65 a kg in the August-October period of 2020.