Twin festivals push up prices of salad items

FE Report | Published: October 04, 2014 00:00:00 | Updated: November 30, 2026 06:01:00

Major religious festivals of the Muslims and Hindu pushed up vegetables for salad on Friday compared with a week ago, traders said.
Prices of some spices increased further while other commodities' prices were static.
Price of cucumber, tomato, carrot, chilli, coriander leafs, lemon increased nearly by 40-50 per cent in last seven days at retail markets in the city.
Cucumber was sold at Tk60-70, tomato at Tk120-130, carrot at Tk60-65 per kg, which was Tk35-40, Tk90-100, Tk 35-40 per kg respectively seven days back.
Chilli prices increased to Tk80-100 (based on different varieties) per kg on the day, which was Tk60-70 per kg a week back.
Coriander leaf prices increased to Tk280-300 per kg which was Tk200-220 per kg a week back.
Lemon prices also increased by Tk4-5 per hali (four pieces).
"Demand is soaring. So prices have gone up," Murad Ali, a retailer at Nowabganjbazar in the city, said.
Prices of per palla or five kg cucumber sold at Tk270-275 at Rayer Bazar, which was Tk175 per palla the week before, he said.
Motaleb Sikder, a vegetable trader at Karwan Bazar in the city, said that chilli prices increased to Tk2,800-2,850 per maund (40 kg) in Kisoreganj, Bogra, Nilphamari districts, which was Tk2,100-2,200 per maund ten days back.
He said truck fare has increased significantly as cow traders are booking most of the vehicles. Overall supply of vegetable reduced, he said.
Apart from salad items, prices of different varieties of brinjal also increased. Other vegetable prices were almost static.
Prices of few spices increased. Garlic prices which reduced last week increased again as both imported and local varieties were sold at between Tk 90 and Tk 100, which was Tk85-90 at retail level in the city's different kitchen markets seven days back.
"Although the demand of both imported and local garlic has shot up before Eid-ul-Azha, but the price hasn't increased at the wholesale, retailers are charging extra for making more profits during Eid," Narayan Chandra Saha, a garlic importer at Shyambazar in the city, said.
He said the price will move down in the next two days when exodus of city dwellers ends.
However, prices of cloves increased to Tk 2000-2150 which was Tk1900-2000 per kg a week back, cardamom price also increased by Tk 50-60 per kg in last seven days, which traders attributed to the surging demand ahead of the two religious festivals.
Among the imported spice items, Aloo Bukhara, Kismis, Cashews (kaju), Pista prices were static thanks to low demands.
General Secretary of Bangladesh Paikari Gorom Masala Babosayi Samity, platform of spice traders, Atiqul Hoque told the FE that these varieties are demandable in Eid-ul-Fitr when people love to eat sweetmeats.
The prices of other spices increased in the retail but static in the Moulovibazar, the biggest wholesale in the city, he demanded.
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