Onions are important in Bangladesh food, but it is difficult to buy them. There is a shortage. Prices have gone up a lot, from US36 cents to around $3.25 a kilo. This is nearly a ten-fold increase. Many Bangladeshis cannot afford them. Bangladesh usually imports them from India. Recent heavy rain in India damaged a lot of its onion harvest. India banned exports to Bangladesh. There may be nationwide protests because of the record onion prices.

The onion crisis is very serious. The Prime Minister stopped using onions in her cooking. She is using other things. Some onions are on sale at twice their usual price. Hundreds of people queued for hours to buy one kilo. One person said he would stand for longer to save some money. A Dhaka resident said her neighbours have stopped eating onions. She last bought a kilo of onions 15 days ago. Street-food sellers cannot make onion-based snacks.