At KR market, wholesale price of beans was at Rs 200, while it fetched anywhere between Rs 160 and Rs 180 for wholesalers at the Kalasipalyam vegetable market.
Credit: DH Photo
Bengaluru: Wholesale beans prices have seen a sharp increase, nearly doubling from Rs 100 per kg at the end of April to Rs 200 per kg on Monday.
Supermarkets and Hopcoms stores sell beans at Rs 220 to Rs 240 per kg.
Despite beans and other vegetables typically coming from nearby areas like Chikkaballapur, Kolar, Mysuru, and Mandya, vendors in Bengaluru blame the price hike on lower supply from farmers.
Venkatesh, a vegetable vendor in Kalyan Nagar, is selling a kilogram of beans at Rs 240. “Earlier this year, we sold a kilo of beans at Rs 60 and Rs 80. Last month, it was around Rs 100. But today (Monday), the wholesale price is Rs 200, and I have priced it at Rs 240,” he told DH.
Drop in supply
He said the supply of beans has been comparatively lower this year, reasoning that the demand for the vegetable peaks after March as people have special occasions like weddings before the monsoon season.
Popular supermarkets price the vegetable between Rs 220 and Rs 240, while online retailers are selling beans between Rs 133 and Rs 182.
At KR market, wholesale price of beans was at Rs 200, while it fetched anywhere between Rs 160 and Rs 180 for wholesalers at the Kalasipalyam vegetable market.
Sridhar, a vendor at Kalasipalyam, said supplies significantly dwindled when compared to previous years. He believed that the price surge only happens in the summer.
Responding to DH’s queries concerning drop in supplies, Jayachamarajendra, a farmer from Tiptur, explained that irrigation issues every year has been responsible for poor yields. It is particularly severe this year due to high temperature, he added.
“Many are avoiding vegetable cultivation due to problems with irrigation. But this year, due to the extreme weather conditions, a majority of the blossomed flowers withered across the farms,” he said, adding that they sell beans between Rs 40 and Rs 60.