Ginger prices hit all-time high

Prices of ginger hit an all-time high of Tk 280-350 per kg at the city kitchen markets Saturday.
Ginger of the local variety was sold at a record Tk 280-300 per kg while the imported variety that has almost disappeared was sold at Tk 320-350 per kg, according to traders.
"Only a few wholesalers have ginger in their shops. Local ginger sold at Tk 260-275 per kg at the Shyambazar wholesale market today," Atiar Rahman, a retailer at Banalata kitchen market in New Market area said.
He said one or two wholesalers had imported Chinese ginger in their shops which they sold at Tk 290-310 per kg on the day.    
Mr Rahman said the prices of ginger have witnessed sharp ups and downs over last ten days.
The price hit Tk 250-300 per kg a few days before Eid but it declined to Tk 160-200 per kg after the Eid day.
"And the price again showed an upward trend today," he said.
He said the price situation will remain volatile until the harvest of the crop in the country in November-January period.
A DAM (Department of Agricultural Marketing) official said ginger prices are now on track of setting new record.
The price hit a record of Tk 220 per kg (imported variety) in April this year and now it climbed to Tk 280-350 per kg.
Prices of ginger also hit record high in China, India and Nepal in 2014, which caused significant increase in price in Bangladesh, he said.
He said gradual decline in local production and increase in demand has made the country totally dependent on imports.
The country produced 74,380 tonnes of ginger in fiscal year (FY) '11, which came down to 69,508 tonnes in FY '13 but its actual demand is nearly 0.25 million tonnes, he said.
He said that besides the use of the spice item in kitchens and tea stores, demand for ginger has increased significantly by pharmaceutical companies, which are involved in manufacturing herbal medicines.    
Narayan Chandra Saha, an importer at Shyambazar in the city, said import of ginger was halted due to a surge in prices in China, India and other exporting nations.
He said the price increased to $ 3200 to $ 3500 per tonne in China a few months back which caused a steep reduction in import by the local traders.
He said the price of China ginger has started to decline and that of the imported variety will reduce in Bangladesh after availability of ginger under new L/Cs (letters of credit).  
He said the price of local ginger has increased due to Eid festival and it will reduce in next few days.
He also said the price of local variety will be below Tk 130 per kg when new crop hits the market next month (November).

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