Onion prices shoot up 60% in two weeks

The average wholesale price of onions at the benchmark Lasalgaon APMC in Maharashtra have jumped close to 60% in the last fortnight, rising 18% in the last one week. The maximum price for the best quality onion touched Rs 50/kg in Delhi on Wednesday as well as in some markets of Maharashtra. Onion prices are expected to continue to rise till December, when the new kharif crop is expected to hit the markets after a delay of nearly two months.

"The average price of onions in Ahmednagar market has increased from about Rs 35/kg about around 10 days ago to Rs 45/kg now," said Nandkumar Shirke, chairman, Association of Onion Traders of Ahmednagar District. The average wholesale prices in most of the onion growing districts of Maharashtra are now ruling between Rs 45-48/kg.

The average onion price at the Lasalgaon market was Rs 38/kg on Tuesday, up 58% from Rs 24/kg a fortnight ago on October 10.


The central government had imposed a duty of 40% on export of onions on August 25 when the prices started rising due to delayed and lower sowing of the kharif crop. The government also started selling onions procured by Nafed in the wholesale markets below the prevailing market rates to suppress the prices.

Declining arrivals of onions to the markets is the main reason for rising onion prices.

"The arrival of the stored onions has declined by about 40% during the last fortnight, from around 400 vehicles per day of 10 tonnes capacity each to around 250 vehicles. The prices are likely to stay firm as the arrival of new red onions from the kharif season would be delayed by about two months," said Shirke.

According to senior trade sources, the sowing of kharif onions in the southern states of Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh was low as farmers incurred losses in the last two years. Below normal rainfall in these states has further reduced the onion production. The country will now get its next new harvest of kharif onions from Alwar in Rajastan.

"However, even in Rajasthan, the expected crop is less than 40%," said a trader, requesting to stay anonymity.