Unexpected rain proves bad business for onions

Traditionally,Kerala,Tamil Nadu and Andhra Pradesh depended on Pune for onion supply. However,wet onions perish during the weeklong transit to the southern markets. As a result,fewer traders from the south have come calling to the Gultekdi APMC (Agricultural Market Produce Committee) market. Traders say that nearly 40 per cent of the produce coming into the market is of the wet variety,which does not last for more than a day or two.

“Normally,we send out around 50 trucks — of around 16 tonnes each — a day to the southern states. Currently,traders are sending around 30-35 trucks a day. Southern traders are also not keen on buying more because of the poor quality. During the two to three days in transit,the wet onions begin to develop fungi and rot,” said Shashikant Gardare,an onion trader at the APMC.  

The red onions that are harvested in November and December normally sell at cheap rates,at around Rs five a kg in the Pune wholesale market. This time the low supply of goods produce has doubled the prices. Also,a lot of old stock was ruined in the recent rains in November when water seeped into the godowns. However,the cured and dried onions are selling at around Rs 25-30 a kg.

Traders say that the Pune market is not big enough to consume all the onions it produces,which is why they cannot sell all that they produce here despite the higher prices. Only around 30 per cent of the onions produced in this region is sold locally; the rest is primarily sent to the southern markets.

“Nearly 70 per cent of the onions are sent to the southern markets. The bulk of the onions go to Kerala,Tamil Nadu and Andhra Pradesh. A marginal portion goes to Gujarat,Uttar Pradesh,Madhya Pradesh and Karnataka,” said Vilas Bhujbal,ex-APMC president,and a leading onion trader in the Gultekdi market.

In the city,the wild fluctuation in the price of onions is causing trouble for retail chains that are finding it difficult to set their prices. “Two days ago,the wholesale markets opened at Rs 23 per kg,but dropped to Rs 9 in a matter of two hours. This has happened thrice in the last few days. As a result,malls are finding it difficult to maintain prices. Over the last week,our onion prices have been around Rs 30-Rs 35 per kg,” said an executive with a retail chain in Pune.