Sales of locally-grown pomelos increased 20 percent, but the wholesale price has plunged 58 percent from late last month, the Council of Agriculture said yesterday, one day before the Mid-Autumn Festival.
Farmers voiced their worries that the price would drop further after the festival, for which the fruit and mooncakes are popular specialties.
Officials with the Madou Farmers’ Association in Tainan said late last month that pomelo production grew 20 percent this year because typhoons earlier in the year did not harm this year’s crop.
Photo: Huang Ming-tang, Taipei Times
In order to prevent further falls in price, pomelos are being exported to China for the first time, the council said.
It is hoped that the move will relieve pressure caused by increased supply on the domestic market.
The council’s Web site showed yesterday that the wholesale price for pomelos in Taipei stands at NT$12.8 (US$0.42) per kilogram, down from NT$30.7 on Aug. 26.
About 5,500 hectares of farmland are dedicated to pomelos nationwide, including 800 hectares in Madou Township (麻豆), which generates about 30 million kilograms of pomelos annually.
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