The government today scraped the minimum export price (MEP) on onions. The decision is expected to encourage out-bound shipments of onion. In a notification, Directorate General of Foreign Trade said that now all varieties of onions can be exported without any MEP. The MEP is the rate below which no trader is allowed to export. The rise in MEP restricts exports and improves domestic supply.<br/><br/>In August, the government had hiked MEP of onion to 700 dollar per tonne as prices at both wholesale and retail levels skyrocketed on lower output due to unseasonal rains. The Maharashtra government had recently asked the Centre to scrap the minimum export price for onions to help boost overseas shipments after its wholesale price went down to 10 rupees per kilogram.