Explained Dikshit Shah, the largest garlic trader in the Agricultural and Produce Market Committee (APMC) from where garlic makes its journey to the city and suburban markets, ``While we have been getting garlic from China for the last three years, the supply has shot up this year. Owing to the bad crop in Jamnagar and Junagadh in Gujarat and Neemuch, Mansoor and Pimplai in Madhya Pradesh due to heavy rains, there has been a shortage of the Indian variety.'' The Union government's decision last year to place garlic under the Open General License following the onion crisis has also considerably aided the flow of thebulb into Indian markets, he added. While the Chinese garlic is being sold all over the country, it is more commonly found in markets of western and southern India, added Shah.

The uniformly sized cleaned garlic arrives in packed nylon net bags by sea and then by land to the APMC market in Navi Mumbai. According to Shah, Mumbai and its suburbs consume a whopping 50-60 tonnes of the garlic daily. ``In fact, this garlic is more popularly eaten among the lower classes, who try to make do with its chutney in place of costlier options like vegetables,'' he explained.

The largest retail and wholesale trader of onion, potato and garlic in Kalyan, Kirit Shah, told Express Newsline, ``The novelty of the item has caught the fancy of consumers, who are buying more of the Chinese garlic.'' Consumers used to the Indian variety are also not complaining. A teacher, Vrinda Bangar says, ``The Chinese variety looks much cleaner and the larger pods make it easier to peel the skin off.'' However, Ghanshyam Jha, awada-pav vendor at Shivaji Chowk, countered, ``The desi maal is better. Even one pod is strong enough. With Chinese garlic, even if you bite the pod raw, the tang doesn't hit you.''

Both the varieties are evenly priced in the wholesale markets, at around Rs 30-32 per kg. At the retail market at Kalyan, Chinese garlic sells at as high as Rs 48 per kg as against its Indian cousin, which sells for Rs 40 per kg. At Byculla, the rates for Chinese garlic are Rs 52 per kg, while the Indian variety is pegged at two rupees lesser.