BAKU, Azerbaijan, January 24. Kazakh residents need to be prepared for the possible increase of the onion price, Serik Zhumangarin, the Minister of Trade and Integration of Kazakhstan, said, Trend reports, citing Kazakh media.
The minister said, that currently, supermarket operators find it increasingly difficult to purchase market-priced onions. This is due to the fact that farmers expect the price of the vegetable to grow, and they are willing to sell it only with a significant markup.
Zhumangarin added that the existing supplies of vegetables, including onions, in Kazakhstan are sufficient for several months.
Currently, confirmed onion reserves amount to 152,400 tons.
"I think that if the decision of the Interdepartmental Commission will be implemented, then we will be able to prevent the prices from increasing”, the minister concluded.
Earlier, Kazakhstan restricted onion exports to meet domestic demand. The Kazakh government restricted onion exports for a duration of 3 months. The Kazakh government expects the situation to improve in April or May, when early harvests from neighboring states will become available.