Potatoes are at least 50 percent costlier than a year ago owing to lower production, tight supply, and the profiteering tendency among a section of people in the supply chain, dealing a blow to the consumers already reeling under higher inflation.
With farmers preparing to plant maize for the winter, seed sellers and businesses expect an increase in acreage because of higher prices of the grain and Bangladesh’s import dependence in covering the shortage of the grain used by feed mills.
Bangladesh Cold Storage Association (BCSA) yesterday questioned the estimates of government agencies of potato production reaching record highs this year, claiming it to be much lower.Â
Potato prices in Bangladesh are soaring even though farmers this year grew a record 1.04 crore tonnes, cutting the buying power of consumers, especially fixed and low-income people already battered by sustained high inflation.