What is the current tomato price across India?
Tomato prices in different markets in India have gone up. Now, they cost between 80 and 100 rupees per kilogram (kg). Earlier, they were available for 10 to 20 rupees per kg.
Vegetable traders say that the price has gone up in just ten days. People all over the country are worried about the rising prices. Some are even planning to stop buying tomatoes.
What is the cause of the rise in tomato prices?
The recent price increase can be linked back to a drop in tomato prices a few months ago. This drop made many farmers give up on their tomato crops. The hot weather in March and April also led to pest attacks, which impacted tomato production.
During that time, the tomatoes brought to the market were of poor quality, making the prices drop even lower. Seeing this, farmers having standing crops abandoned them. Even those who planned to grow more tomatoes chose not to do so.
Tomato crops in South India and Maharashtra were also affected by plant diseases. Heavy rainfall and flooding in important farming areas caused damage to tomato crops and led to shortages. Tomato production was already low this year as heat caused the crops to dry out and wilt. The low availability of tomatoes has increased the price of this fruit which is always in demand.
How do supply and demand change the price of things?
‘Demand’ is how much people want something, while ‘Supply’ is how much of something is available. Supply and demand decide how much anything will cost.
Imagine a candy store that you and your friends visit. Now, if everyone wants the same candy - let’s say the lemon-flavoured one - it means there is high demand for that candy.
But if there aren't many lemon candies available, that means supply is low. This makes the price go up because people are willing to pay more to get it. But if there are lots of lemon candy available and not many people want them, the supply is high, and the price goes down.
The value or price of anything depends on how much people want something and how much is available. This is what happened to tomatoes. The supply became so low that prices increased across India.
Similarly, when there is more supply of something in the market, but few people want to buy them, the prices fall. In this situation, sellers want to sell those items at low prices to attract more customers.
Will there be a further increase in tomato prices?
Vegetable sellers think that prices will go down in the next few weeks. That’s because tomato harvests from various places are expected to reach the market, increasing the tomato supply. However, if there are heavy rains in those areas, the crops might get damaged, which could increase the prices.
Meanwhile, you can try out food dishes that don’t need tomatoes. Some examples of such dishes are aloo paratha, poha, idli or dosa with coconut chutney, vegetable pakoras, yoghurt or onion-based chicken curry, kadhi rice, etc. Let’s hope the price of tomatoes comes down soon so that everyone can afford them.
