Potato prices will start softening next week in major consuming centres such as Delhi as early crop varieties from Punjab and UP are expected to arrive in markets.
The drop in prices may not be significant, though, in Kolkata till the middle of next month, when early varieties such S-6 or Pokhraj produced in the West Bengal will arrive in the markets. Bengal is the second largest potato producing State after Uttar Pradesh.
Senior officials of the West Bengal Coal Storage Association told Business Line that potato prices have ruled unusually firm this year due to delayed arrival of crop from Punjab and Uttar Pradesh in consuming centres.
“Normally Delhi receives nearly 100 truckloads (of 15-16 tonnes each) of fresh crop from Punjab and Uttar Pradesh in second week of November. The arrival has been slow this year. This coupled with low stocks due to crop loss in Uttar Pradesh, Bihar and some other States, last year, kept prices firm,” an official said.
Last year, production in the country dropped to 44.03 million tonnes against 45.34 million tonnes a year ago.
The supply situation is expected to start easing from November 25 as more despatches are on their way to markets in Delhi and Assam.
Any softening of prices in consuming centres should also put pressure in West Bengal which exports nearly 40-50 per cent of its 95 lakh tonnes production to other States. West Bengal has not witnessed any crop loss last year.
The wholesale price in Bengal is now ₹18 a kg at the cold storage end. The retail price of common Chandrakukhi variety is hovering around ₹22 a kg in Kolkata. In Agra, a benchmark for the country, prices are currently ruling at ₹1,980 a quintal against ₹1,370 during the same period a year ago.
West Bengal has about five lakh tonnes potato inventory and a part of it will be used as seed.
Though the stocks are sufficient to meet the demand till early varieties are harvested, the market sentiment is bullish due to delayed arrival of fresh crop from Punjab.
“We don’t expect any significant decline in prices in West Bengal till December,” the source said.
Interestingly, high prices led to about 10 per cent higher sowing of the tuber across the country this season. However, it remains to be seen if it can translate into higher production as potato is a highly weather sensitive crop.