Karnataka: Hotels cut down on onions as price touches Rs 110 a kg

Bengaluru: Street food vendors and restaurants have minimised the use of onion as the price has touched Rs 100-Rs 110 a kg here. Ironically, Karnataka is the third largest producer of onions in the country.

Vishal, the head cook at Aalishan hotel in BTM told The Hans India that, "We have minimised the use of onions in fast food. We are buying onion in wholesale at Rs 80/kg in Madiwala. This is exorbitant. Already Covid has hit hotel business hard and the rising cost of the basic food is adding to our woes. Customers do get irritated that we have kept the cost of the food same but have either removed or minimised the use of onions in some food items, mainly in fast food."

Consumers have also said that the quality of onions coming to market has also not been good.

"We are not getting fresh onions in the shops though there are many who are ready to pay any price. Because of skyrocketing price people are stocking up on onions," Naresh Kumar, a local resident said.

The vendors at vegetable markets attribute the rise price to dwindling supplies due to the damage to kharif crop in the wake of heavy rainfall in Maharashtra and Karnataka, where the crop is widely cultivated.