With the peak season, local farms have started supplying large quantities of vegetables to the seasonal vegetable markets at very competitive prices, registering a significant jump in vegetable sales.
According to figures released yesterday by the Ministry of Municipalities, markets known as ‘yards for local agricultural produce’ sold 370 tonnes of vegetables last week.
Around 60 tonnes of fruits, 116 kg of locally produced honey, 373 kg of dates and 200 boxes of mushrooms were traded in the vegetable markets during this period.
Five seasonal vegetable markets managed by the Department of Agricultural Affairs of the Ministry of Municipalities are located in Al Mazroh, Al Khor Al Zakhira, Al Waqrah, Al Shamal and Al Shihaniya.
All five markets opened for the 2022-23 season on November 3, operating from 7 am to 2 pm. Al Mazruah, Al Khor Al Zakhira and Al Waqrah markets operate seven days a week, while Al Shamal and Al Shihaniya markets open on weekends from Thursday to Saturday. As the harvest season reaches its peak, around 40 types of vegetables are available in the markets.
said a representative of a farm participating in Al Mazroh Market the peninsula Yesterday he offered 18 varieties of vegetables in the market from his farm alone.
“The 2022-23 agricultural season has reached its peak in Qatar as we have started harvesting all kinds of vegetables for marketing,” said Mohammad Iqbal, a vendor at Al Mazruah Market.
He said that due to the season of tomato, cucumber, cabbage, broccoli, brinjal, capsicum, pumpkin, zucchini, carrot and many leafy vegetables like spinach, coriander and lettuce, most of the vegetable production has started coming from the fields. other
Talking about the prices, Iqbal said that due to seasonality, prices of vegetables have decreased due to excess supply. “Following the daily price bulletin, yesterday I sold a 7 kg box of tomatoes for QR15 and a 6 kg box of cucumbers for QR10 to QR15 according to the quality of the products,” Iqbal said.
He added that yesterday he sold 300 boxes of different types of vegetables.
Markets provide a marketing platform for local farmers to sell their produce directly to consumers without any middlemen.
Prices of vegetables in markets are lower compared to daily bulletin prices as farmers get free marketing services.
Agricultural produce displayed in the market is under strict supervision to meet the standards and health requirements such as the product must be free of pesticide residues and of high quality. Vegetable samples are being taken to the Ministry of Public Health laboratory to ensure the quality of the produce.
