Eswaran, who raised tomato crops on one acre of land at Putharachal in Tiruppur district recently harvested 250 boxes (each 14 kg) of tomatoes in 25 days. However, he was left fuming as it fetched him just ₹22,000, a sum not even enough to meet his investment. Since, the prices were not remunerative, he had no choice but to destroy the rest of the crops.
“We (tomato farmers) spend ₹40,000 an acre and do not get even ₹4 per kg now. Hence, we are destroying the crops on our lands,” he says. The reasons are not far to seek. The labour charges are ₹600 a day and the growers shell out ₹40 (for a 14 kg box) towards transport and commission. The prices dropped to as low as ₹ 50 for 14 kg and it is not viable to even harvest the tomatoes, he says.
About 50 farmers grow tomatoes on nearly 70 acres at Putharachal and sell mostly in Tiruppur market. Majority of them have destroyed the crops or simply allowed them to rot in the farm because of lack of reasonable price, he claims. The arrivals at the Coimbatore markets have increased from places such as Hosur and it has led to steep fall in prices, he explains.
Amirtharaj, a tomato farmer at Kinathukadavu in Coimbatore district, says one box of tomatoes (13 kg to 14 kg) now fetches just ₹40 to ₹50. In October - November, the farmers got even ₹1,000 a box. “Many farmers have stopped picking the tomatoes. They need to pay ₹300 a day to a worker to pick tomatoes. Since it is not remunerative, they leave the tomatoes [to rot] in the plants,” he says. Seed prices are 25% higher this year and cost of fertilizers and pesticides have increased 30%. Though the prices fall during this season because of higher arrivals, the impact is severe this year. While the production cost has increased manifold, the price realised is very low, he says.
According to Sampath, a wholesaler at Nachipalayam, said to be one of the largest tomato markets, the arrivals go up to 30 tonnes to 40 tonnes during the peak season. On Sunday, the auction price at the market was ₹5 a kg. “Prices of almost all vegetables, except chilli, have crashed. This is a death blow to farmers,” he says.
M. Rajendran, president of Thyagi Kumaran Market Vegetable Traders Association in Coimbatore, said the wholesale price of tomatoes at the market on Sunday was ₹125 for 25 kg. In November last year, the price was ₹1000 for 25 kg. “Our farmers do not get prices now because the arrivals are high.”
According to an official, tomato price at Uzhavar Sandhai as low as ₹8 to ₹10 a kg. Most of the tomatoes coming to the wholesale markets in Coimbatore from farms at Kinathukadavu, Madukkarai, Thondamuthur, etc are sent to Kerala. The problem now is that there are high arrivals from tomato growing places such as Krishnagiri-Dharmapuri and Oddanchathram resulting in drop in prices for the farmers. However, so far, the officials have not had reports of farmers destroying crops. “When prices fall, farmers or wholesale buyers should look at value addition. Vellingiri Farmer Producer Company operates a mobile tomato processing plant stationed at Thondamuthur. Tomato puree can be made at the plant. Similarly, Tamil Nadu Agricultural University also has facilities to add value. These should be made use of so that farmers realise better prices,” the official said.
Coimbatore district currently has standing crop on 350 hectares.
