India takes measures to discourage onion export

Tag: Freeze Dried Vegetable

India has decided to increase the minimum export price of onion by $25 a tonne for July to discourage export and boost availability of the vegetable in domestic market.

The average minimum export price of onion presently stands at $180-$185 a tonne.

"We have raised the minimum export price of average quality onion by 25 dollars a tonne for all destinations", said a senior official of state-owned cooperative major National Agricultural Cooperative Marketing Federation (NAFED) yesterday.

NAFED is the nodal agency for export of onion and the agency decides on its minimum export price every month, taking supply condition of the vegetable in the domestic market and its prevailing market prices into account.

Onion traders say the minimum export price was hiked to discourage export in view of a 13-year high inflation, which is close to 12 per cent, adding that any further increase in onion price would add to the government's discomfiture.

However, the NAFED official said price of onion in domestic market has gone up because the summer crop has been exhausted and the price is likely to become stable over the next three months.

The new minimum export price of onion is applicable only to July shipment.