“Dati kelangan ka munang hiwain bago maluha. Ngayon, naiisip pa lang kita, naiiyak na ko sa presyo mo!”
The actress-turned-vlogger Judy Ann Santos expressed this remark via her Instagram Stories on August 22 amid the current shortage of white onions in the market.
Judy Ann or Juday also shared photos of the white onions she said she bought for a hefty P550 per kilogram.
“Sibuyas na puti! Nakakaloka ka!” she exclaimed.
“Dati kelangan ka munang hiwain bago maluha. Ngayon, naiisip pa lang kita, naiiyak na ko sa presyo mo!” she added.
In a separate post, the acclaimed actress further expressed her shock at the price increase of white onions from P40 to P550 per kilogram.
“Pasensya na…hindi talaga ko maka-move on…yung dati naming kasing 40 pesos per kilo, naging 550 na! Paano naman akong hindi magpapaka OA! Onion soup, onion rings, at kung ano ano pa!” Judy Ann said.
Judy Ann also later shared a witty photo of herself hugging a plastic of white onions before cooking them.
“Pero dahil kelangan kita kesa mas kailangan mo ko, huhug kita at nanamnamin kita bago kita iluto. Importanteng namnamin ka bilang 550 ka per kilo! Kalerks!” she said.
Although she did not mention where she bought her white onions, the price Judy Ann cited was not far off from the rates in some public markets.
In a GMA News report on August 16, a vendor at the Commonwealth Public Market in Quezon City offers her white onions at P300 per kilogram.
Citing data from the Department of Agriculture, the prevailing price of local white onions in the National Capital Region reached P380 per kilo on August 8.
Public markets in some provinces the GMA News team has visited also offered white onions at P400 per kilo.
The prices of white onions shoot up because of the low supply, according to the report.
“Wala nang ibinebentang puting sibuyas ngayon sa ilang pamilihan. Kung meron man, pagkamahal-mahal naman ng kada kilo,” the report said.
“Panawagan ng industriya ng agrikultura, inspeksyonin ang mga imbakan para malaman kung totoong kulang na bang talaga ang supply,” it added.
Burger King Philippines, a popular burger chain, also announced that it is facing a shortage in its supply of white onions, thus affecting some of its popular burgers and onion rings.
To make it up to its patrons, the brand suggested alternative ways to enjoy its signature “Whopper” burger and other dishes.
“We may be out of onions, but not out of options for you to keep enjoying our flame-grilled burgers,” Burger King said on Facebook.
RELATED: Onion shortage? Burger chain dishes ways how patrons can still enjoy its menu items
Judy Ann, meanwhile, also previously gained some buzz online after she took a break from uploading her cooking vlogs last July.
She cited the rising prices of goods in the market due to inflation as her reason for pausing to upload new content.
“Hindi naman sobrang busy. Ang hirap kasing mag-isip ng mga episodes especially kung ang pagtaas ng presyo ng bilihin ay napakalala,” Judy Ann said in an episode of “Magandang Buhay.”
“Ayokong hindi maka-relate ‘yung viewers sa kung anumang lutuin ang gagawin ko kasi parang napaka-unfair naman. Tuma-timing lang din naman ako,” she added.
