Vegetable grief in Tajikistan, why have prices for onions and carrots fallen to ridiculous levels?

Published 2024년 4월 24일

Tridge summary

Tajikistan is facing a significant challenge as the prices for key vegetable crops, carrots and onions, have hit record lows of 9 US cents and 8 US cents per kilogram respectively, a devastating drop from the previous year. These prices are unsustainable for farmers as they fail to cover the cost of cultivation and storage. The root cause of this situation is an unofficial export ban on these products, introduced in 2024, even though prices were already critically low at the time. Additionally, increased production due to high prices in the previous season and unexpected storage issues due to power outages have further saturated the market, leading to an oversupply and further driving down prices. This situation not only threatens farmers but also highlights larger issues within the country's agricultural market and policy making.

Disclaimer:The above summary was generated by Tridge's proprietary AI model for informational purposes.

Original content

Weekly price monitoring by EastFruit, conducted for the sixth year in a row in Tajikistan, shows a tragic picture for farmers regarding prices for two key vegetable crops: carrots and onions. In particular, carrots are sold for only 9 US cents per kg – which is 3.5 times lower than a year earlier and is an anti-record for recent years for this period of the year. According to EastFruit, the same price was in 2020, but then, due to the outbreak of the coronavirus pandemic, many borders were closed and complete chaos reigned on the market. Also, 9 cents in 2020 and 9 cents in 2024 are different money because even dollar inflation was at an all-time high during that period. It should be noted that prices for carrots in Tajikistan are currently the lowest of all countries in the region, not to mention the countries of Eastern Europe, where prices are much higher. Read also: Uzbekistan and Tajikistan plan to create joint agricultural clusters in border areas The situation is absolutely ...

Source: Eastfruit