KOBE -- Many households can't do without onions, but the rising retail price of the produce -- more than double that in an average year since late April -- has not only hit shoppers, but also cast a shadow over school lunches and the restaurant business.
Unfavorable weather in major production areas has affected the supply of onions. Though the shortage is expected to be alleviated as harvest season has come to Hyogo Prefecture, which is the No. 3 onion producing area in Japan after the leader Hokkaido and runner-up Saga Prefecture. Onions are growing well on Hyogo's Awaji Island. But high prices are likely to continue through the summer.
