A kilogram (kg) of potato at the Centenary Farmers’ Market (CFM) costs Nu 80 to Nu 100 this weekend.
Retailers pay Nu 4,000 for a 45-kg sack of potatoes. In the past, a sack of potato imported from India cost Nu 1,500.
Wholesalers at the CFM paid Nu 3,500 to Nu 4,500 for a sack of potatoes to the farmers of Chapcha in Chukha according to kuenselonline.com
A wholesaler said farmers hoarded potatoes and took advantage of the shortage in the market by hiking the price. “Since the import was banned due to movement restriction, farmers hiked the prices and the ultimate price burden falls on the consumers, particularly the low- income groups.”
She also said that the government could have put a mechanism in place to address the shortage during the harvest season. “Last few months, the government tried to export potatoes without looking into probable shortage within the domestic market in winter.”
According to the wholesaler, the Food Corporation of Bhutan Limited forced farmers to sell their products by instilling fear in farmers about the shortage of export market due to Covid-19.