By: Binta Jaiteh
The turmoil in the food commodity market has led to shortages of Irish potatoes and a significant rise in the price of the commodity, The Voice can authoritatively report.
The price of Irish potatoes, like many other basic food commodities, has been fluctuating but it has reached an all-time high of late.
A bag of potatoes that was trading at D800 has now jumped to D1000 or more, leaving the businessmen with the difficult balancing act of making a profit and ensuring customer satisfaction.
“In this case, it will be difficult for thestruggling businessmen to buy the commodity, sell it at a profit and ensure customer satisfaction. The business climate in this country is bleak,’’ explained Serekunda market vendor Ebrima Manneh.
He accused established businesses of manipulating commodity prices thereby causing shortages and hikes
“I bought a bag of Irish potatoes at D800 and now the price has escalated to D1000 or above,” he lamented
“We are faced with a lot of challenges due to frequent price increments, particularly on basic commodities. This has been affecting the man in the street for the past years. It is hard to believe that food commodities that are made in the country are more expensive than the imported ones,’’ Manneh added.
Vendor at Tippa Garage Sheikh Bah reiterated that Irish potato is very expensive, hence the decision of many vendors not to venture into its trade.
“We now sell Irish potatoes in kilos because of the hike. We also avoid buying them becausethey are highly perishable,” he added.
He stated that the Irish potato price is currentlyvolatile as it ranges from D1200, and D1400 to D1500.
“It is not easy for us also but we have to bear and sell at a high price to gain a little profit and also feed our families. The people should understand that this is not our doing. Everyone is facing the same challenge,” Bah added.
The Spokesperson of Serrekunda Market,Sulayman Dampha, indicated that price instability is causing a lot of damage to the businessmen, saying almost all the basic commodities in the country are expensive.
According to him, the commodity market has drastically changed due to the ‘apathy” of the government towards the welfare of the citizens.
“Every businessman in the market pays tax to GRA and KMC. How can we survive if the business is slow and commodity prices continue to escalate?’’ stated Dampha.
He tasked the National Assembly Committee on Trade and the trade minister to visit the market frequently to establish the ground truths, adding that the National Assembly Members should take up the responsibility to address the challenges of the masses.
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