Daily arrivals of onions at Nashik's Lasalgaon APMC, the largest wholesale onion market in India, dropped by 30% on Monday, with quantities around 10,000 quintals instead of the usual 15,000-17,000 quintals. Officials attribute this decline to adverse weather conditions discouraging farmers from selling their onions.
At this market, the average wholesale price for onions was noted at approximately $18.00 per quintal on Monday. The prices varied, showing a range between $7.82 and $25.25 per quintal. There are concerns among farmers regarding profitability, as they report production costs of about $21.65 per quintal, making lower sale prices financially challenging.
Bharat Dighole, president of the Maharashtra Onion Growers Association, expressed concerns: "Average wholesale onion prices at the APMCs are around $18.00 per quintal. Onions are also being sold at the price range between $9.60 and $14.40 per quintal for the past two months."
The current influx in the market is mostly summer onions, which were harvested during March and April. These onions store well for six to seven months, unlike the kharif and late kharif varieties. Farmers typically retain this stock, hoping for improved market prices.
Given the hiatus in fresh cultivation, no new onion crops will be planted for over five months, until the mid-October arrival of kharif onions. During this interval, the market depends on stored onion stocks from May to October. Recent pricing data reflects an average of $18.00-$19.20 per quintal over the past month.
Dighole highlights the financial pressures on farmers, suggesting government assistance: "Hence, we want the state govt to provide a grant of at least $6.00 per quintal to onion farmers who sold their produce at lower prices during the last two months."
Source: Times of India
