Tomato prices are burning a hole in pockets and prices are unlikely to fall till next month at least. The prices began skyrocketing in June after a drop in the stocks’ arrival to the market.
The wholesale price for the local variety was ₹47 a kg at the APMC Market in Mysuru on Friday. The price in the retail market was between ₹55 and ₹60 per kg. Top quality fruit had been fetching ₹5 more a kg.
Basavaraju, a farmer from Kalkunda in T. Narsipur taluk, is a happy man as he sold the hybrid variety at ₹1,050 a crate. His 22 crates of tomato (each containing over 10 kg) were bought at an auction at one go. Basavaraju’s produce was bought by a trader from Kerala. He described the price as highest in this season.
Basavaraju attributed the sudden rise in the cost caused by a fall in production to declining water reserves (short-duration crops not getting sufficient water) and the demand for the fruit in neighbouring States, mainly from Kerala and Tamil Nadu.
Basavaraju, who had grown tomatoes on a small portion of his land at Kalkunda, had so far harvested 200 crates and expects 50 more crates in the next few days. “I go to markets where I get a good price. I have also sold tomato in Bengaluru and Hassan markets,” said the farmer, who also grows vegetables on his 7-acre plot.
Like Basavaraju, tomato growers, who had brought their produce to the APMC here, said they had grown the fruit with borewell water. The three-month crop needs water intermittently and the groundwater source had not improved with rains playing truant, they said.
Stability unlikely
Until May, tomato was available at ₹15-₹20 a kg. The sharp rise in the price had upset the common people. “I have minimised using tomatoes in cooking with the rise in price. I now buy a quarter kg instead of a kg to offset the hike,” says Geetha, a homemaker.
Tomato prices may remain unchanged or rise further till August as fresh produce was likely to arrive on a big scale by then. “More harvest was awaited next month and thereafter the prices may fall down,” some tomato growers claim.
Trend in price rise noticed
It has been noticed in recent years that tomato prices usually shoot up in the July and August. This is perhaps because of the boost in demand for the popular vegetable in neighbouring States — mainly Tamil Nadu and Kerala.
Kurubur Shanthkumar, president, Kabini Raitha Hitarakshana Samithi, said tomato produce from southern Karnataka, mainly from Mysuru and Chamarajanagar districts, was bought by traders from Tamil Nadu and Kerala to meet the demand in their respective States. “This results in prices hitting the roof, which has also been observed by farm scientists,” he said.
