In a survey conducted this week, vendors in the Rakiraki and Tavua markets expressed their concerns, indicating they couldn’t earn a good profit from their market sales. Sunila Wati of Qalau in Rakiraki said the hike in prices of wholesale produce did not match earnings from her daily sales because there were not many customers in the small town, particularly on weekdays.
“Farmers are selling produce to us at a very high price,” Ms Wati said. “Rakiraki is a small town, and we only have a small number of people that buy from the market, the working people. You can imagine a 20-liter bucket of tomatoes sold at $90, and I’m trying my best to sell them at an affordable price, at least $3 a heap, so that they’re sold by the end of the day.”
Ms Wati, a vendor for 18 years, said the biggest challenge of such a small town was trying to sell their produce. Tavua Market Vendors Association president Abdul Azim said the farmers increased their prices according to demand, and this had put pressure on the vendors.
Source: fijitimes.com
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