A striking economic anomaly has taken hold across Azerbaijan’s regional markets: locally grown produce often costs more in villages than in the capital.
Fruits, vegetables, dairy products, and other goods produced just kilometers away from rural markets are being sold at the same or even higher prices than in Baku – defying basic market logic.
Residents of Agdash, a traditional agricultural hub, say prices have climbed well beyond expectations.
“Onions in Baku are 30 qApik per kilo, but here they’re 50. Pomegranates cost 50 qəpik in the capital and 80 here. Good tomatoes in Agdash go for 2 manats, while in Baku I’ve seen them for 1 or 1.5. Even butter costs 20 manats here, but only 17–18 in Baku,” a local resident told Khazar.TV.
Fewer Buyers, Higher Margins
Vendors blame the imbalance on simple economics: low customer traffic means higher markups per item.
“We sell quince for 1 to 1.5 manats, the best ones for 2 – it’s our local product. People come to Goychay for pomegranates, to Agdash for quince. In Baku they buy tons, we buy small quantities directly from farms,” said a trader.
The difference in economies of scale plays a key role.
“Trucks bring huge loads to Baku, and they sell out quickly because the population is large. The cost of production is the same, but in the city, the high turnover lowers the price,” another seller explained.
Farmers Resist Lower Prices
The same pattern holds in nearby districts like Goychay and Ismayilli, where farmers say rising production costs leave them little room to reduce prices.
“Feed and hay are expensive, so farmers don’t want to sell cheap. We add just 10-15 qapik, but even that barely covers costs – there’s little trade here,” said a dairy vendor in Ismayilli.
A Broken Market Chain
Small-scale sales and fragmented supply chains deepen the imbalance.
“We sell only two or three kilos of cheese a day. In Baku, vendors sell much more and can afford to add just 20 qapik. We have to add 50 or it’s not worth it,” another merchant said.
Meanwhile, Baku’s massive demand and integrated distribution network allow wholesalers to keep prices low and still profit.
“In Ismayilli, fields are small and production costs high. But in Baku, markets get goods from 40 or 50 regions – they grow more, it’s cheaper per unit. Here, everything’s local and limited,” one seller explained.
The outcome, economists note, is a lose-lose equation: producers don’t earn fairly due to multiple middlemen, while local consumers overpay for food grown in their own backyards.
The result exposes the inefficiencies of rural logistics and market management – a system that makes the countryside pay city prices for its own harvest.
