Onion prices to drop in Goa by Jan-end: traders

Onion prices to drop in Goa by Jan-end: traders
HERALD CORRESPONDENT
BELGAUM, JAN 13
The days of shedding tears over the steep price of onions in Goa could be numbered, as onions from Maharashtra have reached the wholesale market in Belgaum, from where nearly half of the stock will be sent to Goa.
“Believe me, onion prices will surely crash, latest by the end of this month,” stated Sambhaji Hongekar, former chairman of the wholesale onion traders association in the Belgaum, while speaking to Herald.
“This is because onion harvesting has just commenced in Maharashtra,” he said.
Onions arrive at the Agriculture Produce Marketing Committee (APMC) Market Yard of Belgaum every Monday, Thursday and Saturday.
“On an average, about 40 truckloads of onions arrive here, of which 50 percent of the onions are sent to Goa. Hence the prices of onion in Goa should also come down accordingly,” Hongekar opined.
The wholesale onion prices in Belgaum on Thursday were between Rs 2000 and Rs 4000 a quintal, depending on the size and  quality.
Adding a profit margin and spoilages at a maximum of 10 percent, the retail price of onions should have ranged from Rs 22 to Rs 45 a kilo.
On the contrary, consumers in Belgaum were shocked as until Thursday, the retail prices of onions were still hovering at around Rs 50 a kilo.
According to traders at APMC-Belgaum, the prices of onions should come down to Rs 10-15 a kilo, the assumption which is based on the past experiences and the yield of onion in Maharashtra and some parts of Karnataka.
Meanwhile, a couple of trucks carrying onions imported from Pakistan also arrived in the Belgaum market.
“These onions were priced at Rs 3,500 a quintal. However, there has been no demand for the onions from Pakistan. Despite their large size, these onions are inferior in taste and colour as compared to the onions from Maharashtra and Karnataka,” Hongekar said.