The demonetisation move continues to impact the vegetable market with the price of tomato (country-bred variety) dipping to as low as ₹6 per kg in the wholesale market.
Traders, however, said the drastic dip in the price has not boosted the sales in the Koyambedu wholesale market. They complained that the continuing cash crunch has deterred many retailers from buying more vegetables.
On an average, the Koyambedu wholesale market receives nearly 450 truckloads of vegetables daily.
M. Thyagarajan, a wholesale tomato merchant, said while country-bred tomato is sold for ₹6 a kg, the hybrid variety is priced at ₹9 a kg at the market.
Retailers may sell for an additional ₹5 or ₹10 a kg. “We are getting 70 truck loads of tomatoes from Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka and the Krishnagiri belt in Tamil Nadu. This winter, tomatoes have witnessed more yield,” he said.
Traders complain that there was a 40 per cent drop in sales.
But residents have started consuming more tomatoes. M. Kumuda, a resident of Mettukuppam, said she had been making curry using tomatoes, instead of readymade purees.
“Since I picked up a lot of tomatoes, I would be making gravies at least three times this week. If only the weather had been better, I could have made dry tomato powder with chillies,” she said.
Wastage growing
Another worrying factor was the growing volume of wastage due to low sales.
S. Chandran, president, Koyambedu Wholesale Licensed Merchants Association, said about 20-30 per cent of the perishable goods were wasted daily for want of buyers. “The cost of most vegetables has dropped below ₹15 a kg. This is at least 50 per cent less than the price in October. Drumsticks are the only vegetable that is priced high at ₹60 per kg. Last year, it cost up to ₹200 a kg,” he said.
Traders noted that usually the price of vegetables begins to drop in January and February. But, this time, vegetables became cheaper in December itself due to low demand.
