Kathmandu, Sept. 28 -- The farmgate price-the net amount paid to farmers for their produce directly at the farm-has risen to its lowest growth rate in eight years, even as consumers continue to pay multiple times more for the same products, according to a report that shows how layers of middlemen profit while farmers are left with little return.

The Agricultural Product Price Index report published by the National Statistics Office, the country's official statistics agency, shows that in the last quarter [mid-April to mid-July] of the last fiscal year 2025-26, farmgate prices increased by a marginal 2.04 percent.

"This growth is the lowest of eight years," according to the report.

But what consumers feel in the market is a stark contra...