Spice price shows prohibitive increase in Ramadan

Prices of all kinds of spices have moved up in the city's retail market as traders seek to profiteer during the month of Ramadan, traders said.  

Except three species, all the items have increased unreasonably only to gain unethical profits during the holy month, officials said.  

Domestic spice varieties such as onion, chilli (green and dried), ginger, garlic, powdered form of turmeric, coriander, mustard, chilli, Indian bay leaf (tejpata), foreign genus like cinnamon, cardamom, cloves, cumin seed-- all witnessed a hike with the beginning of the holy month of Ramadan despite the government efforts to rein in the unusual price increase of the spicy items.

Chilli powder price rose to Tk 210 per kg from Tk 160 per kg before the Ramadan while ginger price increased by Tk 40-50 per kg during the period, according to retailers.

Green chilli and onion prices increased by 60 per cent and 30 per cent respectively in this fasting month.  

Ginger prices, which were Tk 140 (local) and Tk 200 (imported) per kg, increased to Tk 170-180 and Tk 250-280 per kg respectively in the holy month that began on June 30.

Retailers said turmeric and coriander powder prices witnessed 50-120 per cent increase in July compared to that of June.

Turmeric powder prices increased to Tk 200-210 per kg, which was Tk130-140 per kg before starting of the Ramadan.

Coriander powder prices jumped to Tk220-240 per kg from Tk100-110 per kg in June.

Prices of foreign spices like cloves, cumin seed, cinnamon, cardamom witnessed significant hike during the time.

Cloves are selling at Tk1500-1550 per kg, cardamom at Tk1350-1400, cinnamon at Tk300-320 and cumin seed at Tk320-420 per kg in July--15-20 per cent increase compared with those of June.

Morshed Ali, a retailer at BUET Campus Kitchen Market in the city, said that the price is higher in the wholesale market, which has forced them to push up the price.

He said the wholesalers at Moulovibazar in the city are charging Tk1250-1300 for per kg medium quality cardamom which was Tk1100-1120 per kg before the Ramadan.

Cloves prices increased to Tk1380-1420 per kg at Moulovibazar which was Tk1300-1320 per kg in pre-Ramadan period, he said.

Atiqul Haque, general secretary of Bangladesh Paikari Gorom Mosla Babosayi Samity, a platform of spice traders in the country, said dishonest retailers are taking the advantage of the rising demand for spices in Ramadan.

He said wholesalers have sufficient stock of the items and the prices are static for one month at the wholesale.

Ranajit Majumder, a wholesaler at Khatunganj in the Port city Chittagong said imported spices' prices haven't increased for few weeks rather it has reduced slightly.

Mr Majumder said different qualities of cardamom were sold at Tk970-995 per kg, cinnamon Tk220-222, cumin seed Tk 225-230 (Indian) and Tk 355-360 (Turkey), and cloves Tk1250-1260 per kg at wholesale markets---Tk10-20 reduction at per kg in last two weeks.

An official of the Department of Agricultural Marketing (DAM) said that except turmeric, coriander and chilli, prices of all the items increased unreasonably.

"Local turmeric production reduced significantly last season and its import costs also surged while coriander (seed) output also plunged which caused the hike", he said.

"Chilli production has been affected in many areas due to raining which has caused the hike both at the farm and retail levels," he said.