Chilli prices surge as cold storage charges hike

The new Pan Ye chilli price was K5,400 and K6,200 per viss and Myar Ni chilli was K5,800 and K6,200 per viss on 1 June 2022 and its price rose to K7,800 per viss on 14 June, purchaser Ko Thet told the GNLM.
“On 7 April, the new Pan Ye chilli price was K3,800 and K4,300 per viss and K4,600 and K4,700 per viss of Myar Ni chilli. On 14 June, the price rose by K1,500 per viss. The price rose by K3,500 per viss within two months,” he added.
The merchants keep the chilli in the cold storage and resell it after two months at K3,500 per viss, said Ko Hla Han, an owner of the Sein Pan street chilli wholesale centre at the Bayintnaung centre.
The fee for cold storage is K75 per viss for one month and rises to K125 this year. The merchants bought the chilli early this year and stored it at K125 per viss within two weeks and earned K1,300 in profits.
The merchants store the chilli in the cold storage in industrial zones in Hlinethaya, Shwepyitha and Dagon Myothit (South) townships by paying fees.
“There should be good ventilation for chilli bags. If we store more than the fixed amounts in the cold storage, the chilli quality will decline. If so, the prices will drop in the market. The cold storage owners do not take responsibility for such cases. Chilli farmers face losses. They (merchants) should choose the cold storage,” said Ko Hla Han.
“We have to keep limited chilli bags in the cold storage. If we store more than the fixed numbers, the bags cannot get enough cold and they will be low quality. It will be similar to the case of Kapali Kyaw Kone entered into the market in 2021,” said a chilli wholesale centre owner.
When the Sinbyukyun chilli colour turns into black, the merchants name them Kapali Kyaw Kone in the Yangon chilli market and sell by reducing the price to half.
The price of Sinbyukyun chilli was K4,000/5,000 per viss by the end of 2021 and the Kapali Kyaw Kone was only K2,500 per viss.
Early this month, low-grade chilli is similar to the Kapali Kyaw Kone and priced at K5,000 per viss, while the normal chilli fetched K7,000 per viss.
In April, the delta chilli fetched K3,800/4,200 per viss and was priced at K7,000 per viss on 14 June.
The chilli prices are high recently and the chilli kept in the cold storage is priced at over K2,000 per viss. A 20-viss of chilli bag can earn about K30,000 profits after paying the cold storage fees, said chilli dealer Ko Zarni. — TWA/GNLM