The crisis hit just before Mother's Day and with December, a high-consumption month, just around the corner. In October 2025, the Agro-Food Chain recommended that the government ban imports in November and December to protect the local harvest. Today, that decision seems to clash with the reality of empty shelves. Official sources confirm that MIDA (Ministry of Agricultural Development) is analyzing bringing in onions from Costa Rica to “guarantee domestic demand,” but producers say this is unnecessary. The controversy is once again flaring up in the agri-food sector. Producers from Azuero, Coclé, and Tierras Altas denounced that someone would be “forcing” an artificial onion shortage at year-end, just when this product becomes a star in Panamanian kitchens. During a meeting with the Minister of Agricultural Development (MIDA), onion producers denounced that, although there is enough onion to supply the country, the supermarket shelves tell a different story: empty shelves, sky-high prices, and a market that smells more like a maneuver than a real lack of product. In early October, MIDA itself and the producers announced that national production was sufficient to supply all of 2025. But something doesn't add up. They also emphasized that in a matter of weeks, the quintal price went from $50 to over $110, an increase of over 100%. “It's not needed, there's enough national onion!” they highlighted. To the complaint is added an explosive ingredient: alleged smuggling networks that could involve producers from Cerro Punta, transporters, and even officials. According to the onion growers, this underworld is distorting the real supply and pushing prices up, generating an opaque and manipulable market.
