Tomato buyers in the red

NASHIK: Priced at Rs 45 per kg in the vegetable market, tomatoes have become a hot commodity. The rise in prices has been attributed to the shortage in supply in the Agriculture Produce Market Committee (APMC) wholesale markets.

Nashik is one of the main areas where the tomato crop is grown. Typically by the end of summer, the supply of tomatoes reduces. But this year, the supply chain is facing a severe shortage.

"On an average, we have about 1000 quintal of tomatoes coming to the market for sale per day during peak season. But, presently we have only 200 quintals coming to the market for sale. With less supply and more demand the prices have shot up," says Gholap, joint secretary, Nashik APMC.

The other big market for tomatoes is Pimpalgaon Baswant, which during peak season manages to do business worth Rs 1 crore per day in tomatoes. But this surge in business continues only till February and then the focus shifts to Nashik APMC.

This year, the crop is less as the farmers sowed fewer tomato seeds. "It is not cost effective," states Nivrutti Mali, a tomato farmer. "The production cost for one acre of tomatoes is Rs10,000 to 12,000 and it produces about 250 quintals of the crop on average, provided the weather is favourable," he added

A viral attack on the tomato crop last year is one of the reasons for the shortfall. The hike in petrol and diesel prices has increased transportation cost of the crop many times over. In fact, the farmers are demanding diesel without taxes for tractor use.

"Also, during the summer, sowing tomato seeds becomes difficult. Tomatoes are very sensitive to heat and humidity. Due to the severe heat and increased humidity, several crops were damaged. Only the polyhouse crop survived. But growing this is more expensive since the production cost for one acre of this crop is around Rs 4 lakh," says Mali.

Meanwhile, the Delhi government put the onus of escalating prices of tomatoes on rains and high temperatures in the supply areas and said if the same weather conditions continue, the fruit could become costlier.

"The unseasonal rain, three months ago, has damaged the standing crop of tomatoes. What we get in the market presently is only 25 per cent of the normal supply. So, the prices have shot up. This is likely to continue for another month, till we get the new crop," predicts Balu Sanap, a tomato trader.

Normally, a crate (20 kg) of tomatoes costs Rs100-125 in the wholesale market but now the same costs Rs350 and above.

Nashik supplies tomatoes to markets in Mumbai, Delhi, Punjab, Haryana, Siliguri, Assam, UP and MP apart from other markets in Maharashtra. It also supplies to Pakistan and Bangladesh. Normally, it produces about 1000 or more quintals per day, but only 25 per cent of the produce is presently available. This is making consumers pay heavily.