Tomato prices soar as rains destroy crops

By Y Maheswara Reddy | NT

Bengaluru: Just a few weeks ago it was being sold for Rs 20 a kilo, but on Monday it was Rs 65 at Kalasipalyam vegetable wholesale market in the city. If the current weather condition prevails, the price of tomatoes is expected to remain high for the next two months.

“The recent rain has damaged tomato crops in a few districts in Karnataka. With this, the supply of tomatoes to the city has come down to 500 tonnes per day as against the normal supply of 1,000 tonnes per day,” said Wholesale Vegetable Traders’ Association president RV Gopi.

He said the prices of tomatoes would have been higher had tomatoes from Nashik not arrived in the city for the last few days. “The price of tomatoes would have been more than Rs 100 if there was no supply from Nashik. We have to wait for two more months for the new crop of tomatoes in Karnataka. So, we have to pay more to buy tomatoes for two more months,” he said.

He said the other vegetable that has become dearer is beans. “The price of beans has been increased to Rs 70 per kilogram on Monday as against Rs 30 or Rs 40 per kilogram a few days ago,” he said.

The surge in tomato prices has disappointed housewives. They said that they find it difficult to spend more on tomatoes. “Tomatoes are essential to prepare sambar or rasam or any vegetable curry. I used to buy two to three kg per week. Now, I reduced it to 1 kg,” said Padma, a housewife.

Many hoteliers have expressed disappointment and shock over the sudden increase in tomato prices. “Not only tomatoes but also other vegetables have become dearer in the last few days. Earlier, I used to spend Rs 3,000 per day for vegetables. Now, the price hike has compelled me to spend Rs 6,000 per day for the same quantity. The increase in prices of vegetables is affecting our business,” said Krishna Raju of Nisarga Grand.

Meanwhile, Bruhat Bengaluru Hotels’ Association president P C Rao has said the hotel industry has been incurring a loss due to the increase of LPG and vegetable prices. “We have to assess the extra burden on us due to the hike in vegetable and LPG prices,” he said.

Anjaneya Reddy, a farmer from Chikkaballapur, has said the recent rain has damaged tomato and grape crops. “While the recent rain damaged tomato crops at some villages, the excess heat is the main cause for the less yield of tomato plants at other villages in Chikkaballapur district,’’ said Anjaneya Reddy.