Onion prices begin to fall as imports arrive at land ports
A total of 405 tonnes of onions arrived in Bangladesh on Monday
As imported onions started arriving in the country through Benapole and Bhomra land ports on Monday, the prices in Jashore and Satkhira markets fell by Tk12-30 per kg.
Onions were selling for Tk100 per kg on Sunday, but the price now dropped to Tk88-90 in Jashore markets and the price dropped to Tk50-60 in Satkhira markets which was Tk80-90 per kg previously.
A total of 4055 tonnes of onions arrived through the Benapole and Bhomra land ports this afternoon. Those are yet to be released.
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The Dhaka-based importer Zarif International imported the consignment through Benapole for the first time following about three months of suspension of onion imports.
Bhomra C&F Agents Association General Secretary Maqsood Alam Khan said 330 tonnes of Indian onion entered the country in 11 trucks on Monday and 50-60 more truckloads of onions are expected to arrive on Tuesday.
Then, 100-150 trucks of onions will be imported every day, he added.
Abdur Rahim Babu, general secretary of Sultanpur Kitchen Market Traders Association at Satkhira town, said the price of onions dropped by Tk30 per kg due to the news of the import of Indian onions.
The traders who had earlier stocked more onions are facing losses, he added.
Rafiqul Islam, the C&F agent of Benapole Royal Enterprise, which handled the consignment at Benapole, said 75 tonnes of onions had arrived Monday afternoon. More onions would arrive soon as importers have already applied for import permits from the agricultural ministry.
The agricultural ministry had green-lit onion imports last Monday, amid a hike in the price of the vegetable.
The permit for onion imports, or the IP application, began being approved by the Directorate of Agriculture Extension on Monday.
On the first day, about 210 IP applications were approved so far, which will bring in around 280,800 tonnes of onions.
The government banned the import of onion to ensure fair prices for domestic producers. But the move backfired as prices kept increasing.
Aminul Haque Anu, vice president of the Benapole Import-Exporter Association, said the government stopped giving import permits for onions on 15 March last year, which led to a fall in its supply.
"Now, as the government has given a nod for the imports, the price will fall further," he said.
