Onions Are a Luxury In the Philippines

The Philippines saw the price of onions at 700 pesos ($12.80; £10.40). This is a high price for merely one kilogram! With food shortage and crisis on a global level. This has made onions equivalent to gold or pure luxury!

Rizalda Maunes runs a pizzeria in central Cebu city shared the trouble, "We used to buy three to four kilograms of onions a day. Now we buy half a kilo which is all we can afford," 

Filipino food needs onions for cooking, however, with the rise in the cost of living this staple item is becoming rare. The fuel is expensive which adds to the final prices.

President Ferdinand Marcos Jr, who is also the agriculture secretary, has called rising food prices an "emergency". Environmental disasters have also been a factor in the shortage of onions. The two powerful storms in 2022 caused major crop damage.

A bride in the Philippines chose to carry a bouquet of onions as it is more practical and can be sued after the wedding, unlike dried wilted flowers.

The flight crew of Philippine Airlines was allegedly trying to smuggle nearly 40kg of onions and fruits into luggage bags.

However, things are looking better as the onion harvest season begins in February and if the crop is fine then maybe the local crop combined with the imported one can work to bring the prices down!