Vegetable consumers and vendors in a soup for the festive season
Climate conditions with excessive showers of rain, coinciding with the festive season, have contributed to vegetable prices escalating across the country.
Among many vegetables, prices of imported big onions have shown a significant hike in the past month, affecting wholesalers, retailers and consumers.
S. H. M. Ashraff is a wholesale and retail fruit and vegetable vendor in the Kollupitiya Super Market. He bought his onions from farmers in Nuwara Eliya, Badulla, Bandarawela and Talawakele among other areas, and he not seen a price hike similar to this year, in his 40 years of business.
“Prices keep rising each day, and I cannot sell vegetables to my regular customers at different prices, so I buy a kilo of onions for Rs. 480 and sell for Rs. 280. I face a loss of around two to three lakhs a day,’’ said trader Ashraff, explaining that if he were to sell at a higher price, he would not receive the income he currently earned.
Sellers who did not wish to be named expressed their views on the import of onions. They said, “There are other areas in India that have not been affected
by the rains and have a sufficient amount of produce. Some wholesalers are willing to sell us onions for Rs. 140 a kilo, but we do not have a licence to import them.”
Hector Kobbekaduwa Agrarian Research and Training Institute (HARTI) Data Management Centre Chief Prasanna Wijesinghe said: “Although there is a general demand during the festive season, this time there is a 25% - 30% reduction in demand.”
“We can see thar wholesalers are not coming to the market as there is not much of a consumer demand for vegetables because they do not have enough money to buy vegetables as the prices are increasing,” Mr. Wijesinghe said.
A cross section of consumers said they were buying less produce primarily due to the price hike, with the bad weather being a contributing factor.
At the Kalapola market in Pettah, vegetable seller Sumanawathi said she had been traveling once in two days from Anamaduwa for 15 years.
“Rain has made us enter a vulnerable state as we have fewer consumers. We have to sell the bulk as a whole before we leave as we are charged Rs. 500 for a gunny bag.”
The Kalapola market in Pettah required its sellers to pay a membership fee each day.
“We have to find the profit of the market association before our income,” said Sumanawathi.
As sellers begin their sales at 4.00 p.m. and end at 10.00 a.m. the next day, retailers said they stay awake throughout the night regardless of the downpour.
Heavy rains affecting these areas had resulted in vegetables rotting, causing most retailers to cut off the browning parts to keep the produce fresh.
Furthermore, a substantial amount of produce such as Jak fruit was seen hanging on tree trunks, blackened by the rain in the Badulla area.
An analysis done using statistics from HARTI revealed the evident hike of consumer prices in vegetables as at the first week of this month.
A kilo of lime sells at Rs. 1657.14, while green chillies sell at Rs. 1213.79 a kilo, which obtain the highest consumer prices.
Capsicum's market price is Rs. 886.13 for a kilo, and green beans is Rs. 740 a kilo.