MANILA — Red onions were sold at P170 per kilo at the Kadiwa store of the Department of Agriculture (DA) in Quezon City on Friday.

Consumers lined up for hours to avail of the onions, which were sold at a higher price in other markets. Each person is allowed to buy up to 3 kilos of onion at the Kadiwa.

"Dito mura, kapag ginagamit nga kasi namin 'to doon sa 'min, kalahati na nga lang kasi sobrang mahal," said Jean Figuracion.

(It's cheaper here. But we only use half an onion at a time because it's too expensive.)

DA officials on Thursday inspected onion farms in Tarlac and Nueva Ecija, and found that prices go up during biddings by traders.

"Ang binabantayan namin, kung nagbabago ang presyo niya, every hour nagbabago, according to some farmers. Noong after New Year, may P250-P260 doon, but right now umaabot ng 420. Kung magpapabunot ka, you have to pay in advance," said DA deputy spokesperson and Assistant Secretary Rex Estoperez.

(What we are watching is if the price changes. It changes every hour, according to some farmers. After the New Year, there were onions being sold at P250 to P260 there, but right now it reaches P420. If you decide to draw, you have to pay in advance.)

• Inflation hits 8 percent in November, highest since 2008 as food prices keep rising

The agency said onion prices would not immediately go down despite expected harvests this month.

"Kung ang presyo ng farm gate price ay hindi nagbabago, na hindi siya tugma sa ating P250 SRP (suggested retain price), parang wala din. Kahit may harvest pa na ganoon, mukhang di na magbabago presyo nito," Estoperez added.

(If the farm gate price doesn't change, which is not compatible with our P250 SRP, it's like nothing. Even if there is fresh harvest, it seems that the price will not change.)

• Vegetable prices seen to ease due to onion harvest season in Jan, lower fertilizer cost

Officials met again on Friday afternoon to see if they would recommend importing onions to bring prices down.

• Agri dept says 'intervention' for farmers needed to pull down onion prices
• DA official vows to follow law in releasing smuggled onions

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