Veggie prices rise linked to delayed holiday deliveries

Several prices of vegetables have started to decrease after they ballooned last week.

In Malabon City Public Market, vegetable vendors said that they observed a decreasing trend in the prices of different vegetables, however, some prices will likely remain the same, especially the ones from the uplands of Northern Luzon.

The prices of tomatoes range from around P120 to P150 per kilogram, already lower than P280 per kilogram during the start of 2025.

Delayed shipments especially during the Christmas season are one of the reasons why the prices of tomatoes spiked.

“Our suppliers in Divisoria shared that one of the reasons for the increase in tomato prices is shipment delays, as numerous truckers were unavailable to deliver the tomatoes,” said Alma Verdadero, one of the vendors.

Verdadero added that while some of their regular customers believed they were simply taking advantage of the holiday season by raising their prices, they are only basing the increase on the prices set by their suppliers.

Despite the recent price increase, the vendor said their suppliers assured them that there is no tomato shortage.

The Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) reported that tomatoes ranked third among the top contributors to the December inflation as it underwent a 120.8 percent inflation in December 2024.

Vegetables from the chilly areas of Baguio City and Benguet like broccoli and cauliflower are expected to remain the same, as the cold weather caused by the northeast monsoon persists.

Another vendor, Amalia Custodio, said that she is expecting the other prices of vegetables to decrease, specifically the lowland vegetables.

The prices of broccoli range from P150 to P200 per kilogram, while cauliflower is around P150 per kilogram.

Custodio said that the price of broccoli last week ranged from P300 to P400 per kilogram.

"Vegetables that thrive in cold temperatures are expected to have stable prices, and there's also high demand because it's their season,” Custodio added.

Some vegetables that continue to have high prices include bird's eye chili (siling labuyo) at P500 per kilogram, green chilis at P 300 per kilogram, bell peppers at P300 per kilogram, and bitter gourd (ampalaya) at P180 per kilogram.

The vendor said that the price of bitter gourd is currently high because it is not the vegetable’s planting season.

Most vendors at the Malabon Public Market source their goods from Divisoria and Balintawak Public Markets.