Dar residents astonished as EID celebrations triggered high food prices

SOME food commodities were sold at high prices at some of the Dar es Salaam markets due to high demand by consumers during the just ended Eid-el-Fitry celebrations, the survey by the Guardian can establish.  Food commodities mostly affected were those normally preferred during special religious occasions and big festivities such as rice, cow meat as well as local and exotic bread chicken whose high prices are normally characterized by a high demand by potential consumers. A random survey at the city markets reveals that, a whole sale price of rice at Ilala market was sold at between Tshs. 150,000 and Tshs. 170,000 for a 100 kilogram bag and sometimes higher depending on its quality.  A retail price of the same commodity was fetched at between Sh. 1,600 and Sh. 2,000 per kilo, and this is the price of the best quality rice content compared to the previous price of between Sh. 1,300 and Sh. 1,550 a kilogram respectively.   Shabani Abdallah, a wholesale trader at the Ilala market in the city said he bought 200 bags of rice from Mbeya and took only one week to dispose of the whole consignment. At other times, it would normally take him about a month to finish the lot. He said boasting during such periods they reap big profits.  At Buguruni market which is famous for selling bananas, prices was not normal as almost every essential food commodity was raised by 25 percent. Cooking bananas were sold at Sh. 1,000 for a bundle of four pieces instead of the six pieces as it was used before.  Ripe bananas were sold at between Sh. 200 and Sh. 250 each piece respectively instead of Sh. 100 and Sh. 150 as it was before. According to one trader, Omar Salehe, there is no constant price for consumable products for most traders take the advantage of the festivities. The prices of mixed meat at Gongo la Mboto butcheries rose from the normal Sh. 5,500 for a kilogram to Sh. 7,000 a kilogram. This is an increase of 30 percent. Attributing for such a tremendous rise, Mvunda Kipelego a famous meat trader said that, the prices of cows at the nearby Pugu Cattle market were skyrocketed.  The survey shows that a steak meat was sold at Sh. 9,000 instead of the previous prices of Sh. 8,000 per kilo. Both exotic and local breed chickens were far from their normal price as these were rarely seen and apart from that, their prices were unaffordable to ordinary people.  The survey can reveal that, a local breed hen was fetched at a lower price of Tshs. 15,000, and a cock at a lower price of Sh. 20,000. Exotic chicken were sold at a lower price rate of between Sh. 7,000 and Sh. 10,000 depending on their weights respectively. Irish potatoes commodity from which a favourite fried chips is made as a popular food for most young residents including adults in the city of Dar es Salaam remained unchanged at Tshs. 1,000 a kilogram. This price has been virtually remained at a constant level for about two years now in almost all Dar es Salaam markets and their suburbs.  Other food commodities and condiments such as tomatoes and onions had been sold at minimum prices as their supply is constant. A kilogram of onion has been sold at Tshs. 1,400 whereas tomatoes have been fetched at Tshs. 1,200 a kilogram. Some interviewed buyers at the market have kindly requested the authorities concerned from the municipal government to intervene such tremendous price increase which normally occurs during festivities. They were astonished by some traders who tend to benefit by increasing their consumable products at the expense of the religious occasions. The Kariakoo market statistician Nicolus Omolo from where all these commodities are purchased in bulk in the city says that, there has been a constant supply of most of these commodities since the start of the holy month of Ramadhan over a month ago. He said in a telephone interview that, prices of such commodities sometimes rises up whenever there is a high demand by consumers at a local market. He further said that, unscrupulous traders sometimes are to blame as they tend to rise up some food commodities during religious festivities as they take advantage of the celebrity for unknown reasons as they presume many people would emerge to buy their products.  Omolo who is an economist by profession noted that, the situation is unavoidable as the demand for such commodities surge up within a short time and then the prices falls down to a normal business trend when such festivities comers to an end