Govt keeps onion MEP unchanged for July at $185-190/tonne

The government has kept the minimum export price (MEP) of onion unchanged at an average of $185-190 per tonne for July, as prices in the domestic market have remained stable.     

"Onion MEP has been fixed at an average of $185-190 per tonne for July. The prices have more or less stabilised," a senior official with the National Agricultural Cooperative Marketing Federation (Nafed) told PTI.     

Nafed is the nodal agency for onion export, which decides the MEP every month in consultation with 12 other agencies, taking into account domestic availability and prices. 

The wholesale prices of onion in Lasalgaon, the country's largest onion trading hub, have moderated to Rs 611 per quintal on June 26 from Rs 711 on June 2, providing some leeway for Nafed to keep the MEP unchanged.     

India's onion export is believed to have hit a record in 2008-09 at about 16.7 lakh tonnes, up 50 per cent over the previous fiscal.     

Onion from the southern part of the country is exported mainly to Sri Lanka, Malaysia and Singapore, while that from Nasik is sent mostly to Gulf countries.