
Citing impending government initiatives and the expected swift entry of new onion harvests into the market, Adviser to the Ministry of Commerce Sk. Bashir Uddin announced on Sunday that onion prices will drop soon.
"The Ministry of Commerce is keeping a keen eye on the domestic onion market and is prepared to intervene decisively by issuing Import Permits (IPs) if prices do not stabilize within the coming days. New onions are anticipated to enter the market within the next two to three weeks,” he said at a press conference in the Ministry of Commerce conference room in the capital.
Assessing the current stock, he informed that approximately 3.5 lakh metric tons (MTs) of onions are available nationally.
“Specifically, 85,000 to 87,000 MTs are expected to arrive this month, followed by 2.5 lakh MTs next month, he added.
The adviser explained that the recent price volatility stems from a combination of issues: the impact of heavy rainfall, the natural reduction in onion weight due to end-of-season drying, and the higher costs associated with utilizing new preservation technology by suppliers.
“We believe there is no shortage of onions at this moment," he added.
He also said that the government’s proactive measures to support preservation—including the distribution of approximately 10,000 High Flow Machines to farmers—have strengthened long-term market stability.
"This preservation capability had kept prices stable around Taka 60 to Taka 65 for a long period, which covered production costs," he added.
To quickly curb the current price surge, he said, "the ministry is actively utilizing the potential of imports as a regulating tool. The ministry has received around 2,800 applications for onion import permits. We will monitor the situation for the next four or five days."
"To protect domestic farmers, the government is currently refraining from immediate Import Permit approval, having received reports of large onion stockpiles at the land ports," he added.
"If even a small percentage of the pending 2,800 IPs were released immediately, the market would naturally crash, which the government seeks to avoid to ensure farmers are not harmed while consumers are protected. If we see that the market price does not show sufficient improvement or return to a normal state by the end of this week, we will issue the import approvals," he further said.
The Adviser said that the enforcement bodies, including consumer rights, district administration and the agricultural department, have been directed to oversee for ensuring stability in the market.




