Indian potato farmers see cold stores hike prices by 20%
Last year, the charges for the entire season were Rs 110 for a 50-kg bag (Rs 2.20 per kg). This time, these have been increased to Rs 130 (Rs 2.6 per kg). The store owners are also asking the farmers to deposit the charges in advance.
“A bumper crop and the slashed prices have made us apprehensive that farmers may eventually prefer to abandon their produce in the stores. In the past, there have been instances when growers did not come to pick up their stock as the storage rent was higher than the market price,” said a cold-store owner, speaking on the condition of anonymity.
The owners are citing an increased cost of labour to unload and stack potatoes in the cold stores as the main reason for the hike in storage rates.
source: tribuneindia.com
