Bhubaneswar, July 10: A sudden spike in onion prices has hit consumers hard, with the retail price soaring from ₹30 per kg to ₹50 per kg within just two days. The steep increase has raised concerns among households as onions remain an indispensable ingredient in everyday cooking. With prices climbing sharply, many consumers are now opting to buy only half a kilogram instead of a full kilogram to manage their household expenses.

Consumers said the rising cost of essential commodities has already strained family budgets, and the latest hike in onion prices has only added to their financial burden.

Retailers, however, claimed that the price rise has not translated into higher profits for them. According to traders, onions are being procured at around ₹33 per kg, while transportation costs have increased to nearly ₹5 per kg. They further said a portion of the onions transported in sacks often gets damaged, adding another ₹1 per kg towards sorting and wastage. As a result, even when onions are sold at ₹40 per kg, retailers earn a marginal profit of about ₹1 per kg.

Traders attributed the price rise to seasonal supply constraints, saying the new onion crop is yet to arrive in the market and the current supply is largely from cold storage. They also pointed to higher transportation costs following the rise in fuel prices amid the ongoing global conflict, warning that onion prices may remain elevated and could increase further in the coming days.

Meanwhile, the president of Patrapada Kuberi Puri Mahasangha said untimely rainfall has damaged nearly 20 per cent of the onion crop in Nashik and Indore, delaying fresh arrivals. He said onions are currently available in Ahmednagar, Gujarat, where wholesale prices range between ₹22 and ₹28 per kg, while in Odisha they are being sold wholesale at ₹30–32 per kg. However, he expressed surprise over the retail price touching ₹50 per kg, stating that monitoring and regulating the open market rests with the government.