onions

Chinese onions are hitting retail shelves in India after a government effort to import produce to offset the country’s local supply deficit and soaring prices, the India Times reports.

The onions, which were brought to India via Afghanistan, are being sold for around Rs50 (US$0.80) per kilo.

According to Sameer Sheikh, a local wholesale onion and potato dealer operating out on the Kalupur vegetable market, 4,000kg of Chinese onions have been brought into the country.

The produce is significantly larger in size, with one onion weighing somewhere between 450g and 600g compared to local onion’s approximate 100g.

'These onions are huge in size and are being bought by people who use the vegetable in bulk, especially in hotels and restaurants,' said Sheikh.

However, there have been disappointed reports regarding their taste, which is considerably less pungent than domestically produced onions.