Vegetable prices plunge as rains boost farm yield

CEBU, Philippines - Prices of several goods in public markets remain stable, with costs of vegetables decreasing but the current gloomy weather has brought fish prices up, The FREEMAN learned yesterday.

Vendors at the Carbon Market, the biggest public market in Cebu City, said that vegetable prices significantly went down due stable supply.

“The occasional rain has helped vegetable production so there's enough supply in the market that’s why prices are cheaper,” vendor Librada Canoy, 49, told The FREEMAN in Cebuano yesterday morning.

Retailers noted that vegetable prices decreased by at least P5 to P20 per kilo.

For instance, as of Thursday, carrots were sold at P45-P50 per kilo from P70;  cabbage was at P35-P40 a kilo from P60; string beans were sold at P40 per kilo from P60; and price of eggplant stood at P25 per kilo from P40.

Moreover, a kilo of squash was traded yesterday at P15 from P20 while price of okra also went down to 35 per kilo from P50.

Vendors said prices started to decrease a few weeks ago, attributing it to the favorable weather which may have improved vegetable production in the provinces.

They added that price hikes in vegetable products were last experienced in May to June when El Niño affected the production areas.

With the forecast that the El Niño phenomenon will prevail through the end of 2015 and early 2016, consumers may just have to expect fluctuating vegetable prices, vendors said.

Fish prices

Meanwhile, consumers may also have to brace for higher fish prices this time due to the gloomy weather, reportedly brought by the presence of typhoon Hanna which entered the Philippine area of responsibility Wednesday.

Sellers increased prices of fish products by at least P20. As of yesterday, anduhaw was sold at P160 per kilo, up from P130 before; caraballas was priced at 120 a kilo from P100; and bilong-bilong was traded at 140 per kilo from P120.  

“Fish prices are up because of the strong winds which prevent fishermen from having enough catch,” retailer Gina Capuno, 43, said in dialect.

On the other hand, prices staple food rice remain stable amid the lean months. Vendors said no rice price increase has been noted so far.

The National Food Authority in Central Visayas (NFA-7) already warned that an increase in commercial rice prices may be expected during the lean harvest season which starts in July until September. (FREEMAN)