KINGSTON, Jamaica – Sorrel prices are around $800 a pound at the Coronation Market this week and are expected to climb above $1,000 as Christmas draws near, according to vendors.

With less than a week to go for Christmas, demand for the product – used by Jamaicans to make a traditional drink during Yuletide – is surging sharply. Supplies of the crop are already limited due to the disruption caused by the passage of Hurricane Melissa.

Against this background, vendors expect the price of the product to jump.

“This week its $800 but … the prices will rise because the supplies will get lesser and lesser,” sorrel vendor Tyrone told Observer Online on Thursday.

Sorrel normally sells for about $500 per pound throughout the year but some vendors have predicted that it could spike up to $1,500 per pound amid the supply challenges.

However, there is some good news for shoppers as prices of some products are lower from a week ago. Among them, the prices of carrots are $300 a pound, dropping from $400 last week; scallion prices are down by half from $800 to $400; and tomato prices are down to $700 from a high of $800 a week earlier.

Watch another episode of Market Bag with host Carlysia Ramdeen.