Onion prices in Bangladesh have remained high despite the government authorising imports from India to curb rising costs. Over the past six days, onions have arrived daily through land ports, but retail prices have shown little movement. As part of efforts to stabilise the market, the government began issuing 200 onion import permits per day from 13 December 2025.
According to a handout from the PID, each import permit allows the import of up to 30 tons of onions. The Ministry of Agriculture said the process will continue until further notice. Applications submitted earlier remain valid, and only importers who submitted applications from 1 August 2025 onwards are eligible to reapply. Each importer is allowed to submit one application at a time, with the daily permit system intended to manage supply flows.
Imported Indian onions are selling at BDT 120 to 130 per kilogram, equivalent to about US$1.09 to US$1.18, while new local onions are priced at around BDT 120 per kilogram, or US$1.09. Older local stock is reaching BDT 150 per kilogram, or about US$1.36. Local "Murikata" onions have also entered the market, trading above BDT 100 per kilogram, or roughly US$0.91. Consumers had expected prices to ease once imports began, but market surveys in Karwan Bazar and Rampura in Dhaka showed continued high pricing.
Wholesale prices reflect a similar pattern. Old local onions are trading at BDT 130 to 135 per kilogram, or US$1.18 to US$1.23. New local onions are selling at BDT 90 to 100 per kilogram, or US$0.82 to US$0.91. Imported Indian onions are priced at BDT 100 to 110 per kilogram, or US$0.91 to US$1.00. Officials said Indian onions cost about BDT 40 per kilogram, or US$0.36, before a 15 per cent import tariff.
According to the Plant Quarantine Wing, permits were issued for 7,500 tons of onions, with about 3,000 tons having arrived so far. From Sunday, the approval of 200 permits per day allows up to 6,000 tons daily. However, transit from Maharashtra to Bangladeshi markets takes several days, meaning not all permitted volumes appear in the market immediately.
Traders reported that local onion harvesting has started in Pabna, Meherpur and Faridpur, with new-season onions entering markets at lower prices. However, older local and imported stocks continue to trade at higher levels, keeping overall prices elevated. Traders attributed this to distribution delays and unregulated margins.
While onion prices remain high, the potato sector is facing the opposite situation. Agriculture adviser Lieutenant General (retired) Md Jahangir Alam Chowdhury said Bangladesh produced 1.12 crore tons of potatoes this year, around 22 lakh tons more than national demand. Production costs in 2025 ranged from BDT 14 to 17 per kilogram, or US$0.13 to US$0.15, rising to BDT 20 to 25 per kilogram, or US$0.18 to US$0.23, at the cold storage gate. Farmers are currently selling at BDT 8 to 16 per kilogram, or US$0.07 to US$0.15, resulting in losses.
To address this, the government requested cold storage operators to hold older potatoes longer to support farmgate prices. The adviser also noted that only two per cent of potatoes are processed in Bangladesh, compared with seven per cent in other countries, and called for greater focus on processing capacity and suitable varieties.
Source 1: Prothom Alo
Source 2: New Age
Source 3: Bonik Barta
