Are eye-watering onion prices a new threat in world food crisis?

The soaring prices of onions could make you cry! In the Philippines, even before onions are fully grown farmers race to harvest the crop to try and cash in on the vegetable which become a luxury item in the country.

Onion prices have soared in recent months, reaching as high as 800 pesos (nearly $15) a kilogram in the Philippines' capital Manila supermarkets, making them more expensive than chicken or pork.

Meanwhile, the wholesale price of onions in Tajikistan as well continues to grow rapidly. According to Bloomberg, prices are soaring, fueling inflation and prompting countries to take action to secure supplies. Morocco and Turkey have halted some exports, as has Kazakhstan. The Philippines has ordered an investigation into cartels.

The jump in prices is a knock-on effect from disastrous floods in Pakistan, frosts damaging stockpiles in Central Asia and Russia’s war in Ukraine. In North Africa, meanwhile, farmers have battled severe droughts and an increase in the cost of seeds and fertilizers.

As the cost of buying nutrient-rich vegetables and fruit soars and incomes struggle to keep up, healthy diets are getting out of reach. More than 3 billion people cannot afford a healthy diet, the most recent UN figures show.