Price of tomatoes, onions witness significant decline
Onion and tomato, much in use in our cooking, witnessed a massive rise in prices in recent weeks as flash floods washed away entire crops, thereby compounding the food emergency situation in the country.
To deal with this crisis, the government decided to issue permits for imports from neighbouring countries to minimise the transport time as well as costs; and concurrently requested the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) to waive off taxes and levies on import of onion and tomato for the next three months.
While China is a net exporter of onion with Pakistan together with Brazil and the Philippines emerging as the fastest growing export market for China yet with the drought and zero Covid-19 tolerance policy one would assume that Chinese exports of onion and tomato have significantly declined this year.
The rising prices of onions and tomatoes have considerably declined as the trucks arrived from Afghanistan and Iraq carrying the vegetables. According to the sources from the vegetable market, over 50 trailers of tomatoes and 70 trailers of imported onions have reached Karachi’s market. The imported have said that the permits for the import of more than 1,150 tonnes of tomatoes and onions have been issued till now.
Currently, in the retail market, tomatoes are being sold at Rs200 per kg while the price of onions is between Rs120-160 per kg. In the wholesale market, onions were sold at Rs50 per kg while tomatoes at Rs100-110 per kg.
The administration of the Karachi Sabzi Mandi has urged the Sindh government to ensure the availability of imported tomatoes and onions at affordable prices.
Meanwhile, it was reported that the containers coming from Afghanistan faced delays at the border customs posts for clearance.
As tomato is a perishable commodity while the quality of onion also deteriorates due to high temperature, the Pakistan Fruit and Vegetable Association has appealed to the federal government and the customs department to clear the trucks carrying these items on a priority basis.
According to the importers, permits for the import of more than 1,150 tonnes of tomatoes and onions have been issued till now.
It is expected that the rates of tomatoes and onions will further decrease following the import of these items from Iran, Afghanistan and Central Asian states.
Hey! My name is Mahnoor and I joined Rangeinn as the content & News Writer. Currently, I’m doing my Bachelors in International Relations.
