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Microeconomics · Demand and Supply

Track vegetable prices and explain why they change

Record the prices of five vegetables twice a week for a month and explain each rise and fall.

  • DifficultyEasy
  • Estimated time2–4 weeks
  • Budget₹0
  • ClassClass 9–12
  • TeamSolo or up to 3
  • You needNo equipment

Prerequisites: The ideas of demand and supply

Original · by TechnifyedData AnalysisField StudyBeginner friendlyFree to doNo equipmentResearch orientedWell documented

My projects

Overview

Vegetable prices move every week with weather, season, festivals and transport. Recording them yourself and matching each move to a cause shows demand and supply working in real time.

Why build this?

It turns the first chapter of economics into something you can watch in your own market, and the data is yours alone.

What you will learn

  • How supply shocks and demand changes move prices
  • How to collect consistent price data
  • How to compare retail prices with wholesale market prices
  • How to separate a cause from a coincidence

Skills you will use

Explaining causesLine graphsPrice collection

Safety

  • Tell someone where you are going, go in a group, avoid traffic, deep water and bad weather, and get permission before entering private land.

Materials and tools

  • A notebook
  • A local market
  • Published wholesale prices for comparison

Tools and software

Spreadsheet

Expected cost₹0Nothing to buy
Estimated duration2–4 weeks6 build steps, plus the report

Step-by-step roadmap

  1. Start

    You will finish with: price graphs for five vegetables with each major move explained.

  2. 1

    Prerequisites

    Know this first: the ideas of demand and supply. Then collect the 3 items in the materials list.

  3. 2

    Learn

    • How supply shocks and demand changes move prices
    • How to collect consistent price data
    • How to compare retail prices with wholesale market prices
    • How to separate a cause from a coincidence
  4. 3

    Plan

    Write the research question, who or what you will study, how many, and the exact questions or measures.

  5. 4

    Build

    1. Choose five vegetables, including one seasonal and one stored (onion or potato).
    2. Record the price per kilogram at the same two shops twice a week for four weeks.
    3. Note weather, festivals and news each week.
    4. Plot each price against time.
    5. For every large move, write the most likely cause and whether it was supply or demand.
    6. Compare the retail price with the published wholesale price.
  6. 5

    Test

    Ask the shopkeepers why a price changed and see if it matches your explanation.

  7. 6

    Document

    Keep the raw responses or data safe, anonymise names, and build the tables and charts. Report structure

  8. 7

    Present

    State the question, the method in one line, the two or three main findings and their limits. Presentation structure · Viva questions

  9. 8

    Publish

    Share a short paper or poster; offer a summary to the people who took part.

Expected outcome

Price graphs for five vegetables with each major move explained.

Other versions of this project

Beginner version

Track two vegetables for two weeks.

Advanced version

Calculate the retail margin over wholesale and how it varies.

Research version

Compare price volatility of perishable and storable vegetables using their standard deviations.

Make this project better

  1. BasicTrack two vegetables for two weeks.
  2. This projectTrack vegetable prices and explain why they change
  3. AdvancedCalculate the retail margin over wholesale and how it varies.
  4. ResearchCompare price volatility of perishable and storable vegetables using their standard deviations.

Research mode

Text marked "You write this" is a prompt for your own work; everything else is specific to this project.

Research question
What causes week-to-week changes in vegetable prices in my local market?
Hypothesis
If a vegetable is perishable and in short seasonal supply, then its price will vary more than a storable one.
Variables
You write thisWhat you change or compare, what you measure, and what you hold constant.
Methodology
Compare price volatility of perishable and storable vegetables using their standard deviations.
Data collection
Prices per kilogram from the same two shops, twice a week, with notes on weather and events.
Analysis
You write thisChoose the table, chart or test that answers the question; report averages with their spread.
Limitations
Two shops and one month cannot represent a whole city or a full season.

Literature review

Find five to eight sources (your textbook, review articles, reports) and note what each says about your question. Group them by idea, not one after another, and end with what is still not known.

References

List every source you used in one style throughout (author, year, title, where it was published, link and the date you opened it).

Working as a team

Solo or up to 3. Suggested roles:

Research and readingData collectionAnalysisWritingPresentation

Report and presentation

Report structure

  1. Title
  2. Abstract
  3. Introduction and research question
  4. Review of what is already known
  5. Method: sample, tools, procedure
  6. Findings (tables and charts)
  7. Discussion
  8. Limitations
  9. Conclusion and suggestions
  10. References
  11. Annexure: questionnaire or data

Presentation structure

  1. Research question
  2. Why it matters
  3. Method and sample
  4. Finding 1
  5. Finding 2
  6. Finding 3
  7. What it means
  8. Limitations
  9. Conclusion

Viva questions

Try answering before you open each one.

Was the tomato price change a supply or demand effect?

Explain from your notes.

Why do retail and wholesale prices differ?

Transport, wastage, rent and the retailer's margin.

What is price volatility?

How much a price moves up and down over time.

Why record at the same shops?

So differences are due to time, not to the shop.

Resources

Decision making with spreadsheetIIT Roorkee · Free course course33 Spreadsheet Projects Course for Beginners – Excel and Google SheetsfreeCodeCamp · Free video courseAnalyzing Spreadsheet Data with PythonIBM · Free course courseLibreOfficelibreoffice.orgAgmarknet: mandi pricesagmarknet.gov.inMoSPI: India's official statisticsmospi.gov.in

Source and attribution

Original

Written by Technifyed. Free to use for your own school or college project; write the report in your own words. Added 1 Oct 2026.

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