Prices of most summer vegetables and some types of fruits of local production have nearly doubled in the city of Hasakah, northeastern Syria, since the beginning of August, after a noticeable decline that lasted about two months.
During the past two months, local production contributed to a significant decrease in the prices of vegetables, which positively affected the ability of the low-income people purchase, according to traders and residents. Farmers and groceries attributed the recent rise to the lack of production and its decline.
The cultivation of summer vegetables is widespread in the areas north of Hasakah, in a large percentage and in the south of it to a lesser extent, especially tomatoes, cucumbers, eggplants, zucchinis, watermelons and others.
Before putting the local production on the market, the prices of vegetables witnessed a significant increase, as the local markets in Hasakah depended on importing vegetables and fruits from Iran, Jordan and Iraq through the Kurdistan Region of Iraq (KRG) in dollars, as a result of the closure of the crossings with the Syrian government-held areas.
Since March 21, the Syrian government has imposed restrictions on the movement of civilians and trade in three crossings linking its areas with the Autonomous Administration of North East Syria (AANES)-held areas.
Ahmed Mahmoud, a farmer from the countryside of Derbasiya, north of Hasakah, said that the production during the last ten days has declined amid the continued increase in demand. The farmer attributed the decline in production to the high temperatures during the past weeks and their impact on crops, in addition to the diseases that affect them.
He pointed out that the prices of local production of vegetables remain lower compared to the imported ones, whose value is calculated based on the dollar exchange rate.
