Families buying Bhai Masala this week are paying far more for pistachios than they did a year ago. Reports on November 4 and 5 quote them at Rs 3,500 to 3,600 a kilo in Kalimati, Rs 3,600 at wholesale and about Rs 4,000 at retail. A trader in New Baneshwor said they now cost more than Rs 4,000.
The price changes with the grade, size and country of origin, whether the nuts are raw, roasted or salted, and whether the buyer is a wholesaler or a household. Bhai Tika falls on Wednesday, November 11, and the Yama Panchak period begins on November 6.
Other Bhai Masala items have risen by less. Prices a kilo include almonds at about Rs 1,780 to 1,800, cashews at Rs 1,700 to 2,200, walnuts at Rs 500 to 650, raisins at Rs 500 to 750, cardamom at Rs 6,000 to 8,000 and makhana at Rs 1,700 to 2,000. Some of these are close to last year’s levels in traders’ comparisons, and one grade of cinnamon is cheaper. Pistachios show the steepest increase.
Traders point to several causes. The first is flood damage to the northern trade routes. The August 26 flood in the Bhotekoshi destroyed infrastructure around the Rasuwagadhi–Kerung crossing with China, and China closed the Tatopani crossing in late August over landslide risk. Cargo was diverted to Korala in Mustang, which had its own rain and road damage in September. By late September all three main crossings with China were disrupted, and on October 30 Rasuwagadhi was still cut off with no reopening date.
The diversion made shipments slower and dearer. Manoj Babu Shrestha, president of the Nepal National Business Federation, said in September that goods rerouted from Kerung to Korala would travel about 1,100 kilometres further, which could add Rs 100 to 150 to the price of an item. The road from Mustang is narrow and partly unpaved, and Korala has limited customs and quarantine facilities.
Nepal imported more than Rs 3 billion worth of dry fruits and related products in the first three months of this fiscal year. In October alone it imported 5.67 million kg of selected dry fruits worth Rs 918.55 million, according to customs data.
The Department of Commerce, Supplies and Consumer Protection said it had not monitored dry-fruit prices. Its information officer said the department had been focusing on cooking oil and sweets and would send inspection teams for dry fruits from November 5.
