Sibuyas: A Rich Man’s Vegetable

Real Talk | Onion Inflation in the PH

Onions have been cultivated in Philippine soil for centuries and are widely available in the country. It is no surprise that red and yellow onions alike are staple ingredients in Filipino households. Countless dishes within our cuisine feature onions as an ingredient, whether as a main focus in the dish or as something to add an extra kick of flavor. Whether required in a rich man’s dish or a poor man’s, onions were always easily obtainable because of their reasonable price. Or at least they used to be. The cost of onions per kilogram has skyrocketed from Php 170 per kilogram in August 2022 to as much as Php 650 per kilogram in January 2023, effectively making it more expensive than meat.

A multitude of factors could explain this sudden price spike. Global inflation as a whole has been causing food prices everywhere to spike. Inflation has hit the Philippines especially hard, with an 8.1% increase in prices, of which onion prices make up 0.3%. Internal factors such as insufficient local supply, hesitance to import while the issue was not as bad, as well as issues within the agriculture department have also contributed to the rise in prices. The Philippine government has sought to remedy the situation by issuing a price cap on onions and finally resorting to importation as a temporary solution; however, the damage has already been done.

When something as readily available and affordable as onions suddenly becomes unattainable for the masses who rely on it, it sets a dangerous precedent by showing that those without will have to sacrifice their quality of life in order to get by. Many of us are fortunate enough to see those prices and decide to avoid buying onions for a while without suffering much loss. But what about the members of Philippine society who have onions in their diet out of necessity? What of those who included onions in their meals because it was a cheap and easy way to obtain the sustenance they needed to work their hard labor jobs? Unlike those in privileged sectors of society, they are not unaffected. It may seem like a minor loss now—after all, people can live without onions. But what if things get worse and those in the peripheries are deprived of something more necessary, like water? We, as a society, need to address the causes behind these lapses and act accordingly, or else we risk innocent lives being lost.

Onions, once universal to Filipino kitchens, are now a rich man’s vegetable due to a myriad of societal issues. It may seem trivial to some, especially to the privileged, but it holds worrying implications for the future of the marginalized and our country as a whole.