Garlic prices suddenly rise to P280/kilo

The Department of Agriculture (DA) is trying to figure out why there was a sudden and steep increase in garlic prices, a report from GMA's “24-Oras” program said Friday. Garlic prices at the Kamuning market in Quezon City soared to P280 per kilo, shocking consumers and limiting their purchase to a handful of heads. The DA found that the current price of garlic in Metro Manila was now similar to prices of imported garlic at P290 to P350 a kilo. DA Agribusiness and Marketing assistance service Director Leandreo Gazmin said that the cold weather from December to February may have caused the price spike. They were also checking if speculation on the supply was a cause. “Baka may konting manipulaiton on the price dahil actually ang tumaas is the imported garlic and hindi namin dapat nakikita yun,” Gazmin explained. Prices of garlic also increased in Laoag City in Ilocos Norte, a major producer of garlic. The usual P180 per kilo price jumped to at least P200. To counter the increase, the DA said they were going to push the local garlic in the markets, which will sell at P170 per kilo. Meanwhile, the price spike did not just involve garlic, but was also seen in onions (from P40 to P50), carrots (P40 to P80), cauliflower (from P60 to P100) and lettuce (from P80 to P100). — Andrei Medina/DVM, GMA News