Cold Storage Association offers to sell potatoes to Bengal govt at Rs 26 per kg

The West Bengal Cold Storage Association has proposed to supply potatoes at the rate of Rs 26 per kg to the state government to check the rising prices in the retail market. Currently, potatoes are being sold at Rs 37-40 per kg in the retail market, which varies according to the size.

"We have sent a proposal to the state government to supply potatoes of 35 mm minimum size at the rate of Rs 1,300 per 50 kg packet (Rs 26 per kg). This price is marked on the cold storage gate", an official of the cold storage said. The current price in cold storage is Rs 28-29 per kg.

He further said, "We cannot handle the distribution ourselves. We can arrange around three lakh quintals of potatoes per day for the government, which is about 30 percent of Kolkata's daily requirement". Most of the potatoes in Kolkata come from the Hooghly district.

Agriculture Marketing Minister Becharam Manna said state-administered Sufal Bangla outlets are selling three kg of potatoes and one kg of onions to each family at Rs 29 and Rs 39 per kg, respectively. Since last week, 25 new Sufal Bangla outlets have been opened. The reason for the high prices is attributed to low production and low quality due to unfavorable climatic conditions.

Cold storage figures show that 45 lakh tonnes of potatoes are available, but in reality, it is 30 percent less considering the small-sized varieties and wastage. This year, the share of small-sized potatoes is double that of last year, and the reduction in national production has also kept prices high.