Eye-watering onion prices make Philippine staple a luxury

Even before his onions are fully grown, Philippine farmer Luis Angeles races to harvest the crop and cash in on eye-watering prices for a vegetable that has become a luxury item in the country.

Onion prices have soared in recent months, reaching as high as nearly $15 a kilogram in Manila supermarkets, making them more expensive than chicken or pork.

But prices remain stubbornly high and onion farmers like Angels have been harvesting earlier than usual to reap the windfall.

"What is happening is historic," said Angeles, 37, as his workers pulled undersized red and white bulbs out of the soil near the northern town of Bongabon, the country's self-proclaimed "onion capital".

"This is the first time that prices have reached this level."

When he began harvesting last month, Angeles received as much as 250 pesos per kilogram for his crop.

By the time his onions reached Manila supermarket shelves, the price had more than doubled, exceeding the daily minimum wage.

Some restaurants have stripped the staple ingredient from dishes, while many families already grappling with the highest inflation in 14 years have stopped eating them.

To meet demand and push retail prices back below 200 pesos, the government has approved the importation of 21,000 tonnes of onions and faces calls to crack down on traders suspected of hoarding.