Consumers switch to tamarind and lemon as tomato prices soar

HYDERABAD: With tomatoes now costing more than a litre of petrol, the common man in Telangana and Andhra Pradesh has cut down on the vegetable from the daily menu. Currently, the price of the most sought-after vegetable has gone up to Rs 140 per kg in Hyderabad and Rs 120 (open market price) in Vijayawada.

For a fortnight, the prices of tomatoes have been on the rise. This spike has been attributed to heavy rains in tomato production areas and abnormal temperatures in June. Going by the trend, the price of tomatoes in the wholesale market is expected to touch Rs 200 per kg in the next few days. Because of this, several families are reportedly switched to alternatives such as tamarind and lemon on their daily food menu.

“Tomato is a prominent ingredient in both vegetarian and non-vegetarian dishes. The steep hike has made the ingredient disappear from kitchens of poor and lower middle-class families. Steps should be taken by the government to supply tomatoes at a subsidised price by arranging special stalls,” said M Aparna, a homemaker in Hyderabad.

Officials of the Horticulture Department in Telangana maintain that the price of tomatoes have soared due to unseasonal rains and heavy damage to crops in Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka and Maharashtra from where the tomatoes are usually sourced in the months of May and June.

“Every year, farmers in Telangana usually start producing tomatoes in the beginning of June. It takes between 60-100 days to harvest the crop. However, due to the delay in the arrival of the monsoon, there has been a delay in the arrival of local variety tomatoes at markets,” said a senior official of Telangana State Horticulture Department.

The increase in price of tomatoes has been a countrywide phenomenon with several metro cities feeling the pinch. Tomatoes usually arrive in Hyderabad markets from Ranga Reddy, Vikarabad, Medchal Malkajgiri, Mahabubnagar and other districts of Telangana, apart from Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka and Maharashtra.

“Tomato prices are expected to cool down in the next fortnight when local produce starts arriving at the markets in Telangana,” the official added.

In Andhra Pradesh, traders shared that incessant rains and pest attacks have caused cutbacks in the supply from major tomato-producing districts like Kurnool, Chittoor, Kadapa and Anantapur. The State Government has already selling tomatoes at a subsidised price of Rs 50 per kg at Rythu Bazars across the State. In Vijayawada, tomatoes are being sold at Rs 120 per kg (open market price), while Rythu Bazars are selling the vegetable for Rs 50 per kg. Each person is allowed to purchase only one kilogram.

According to Agriculture Marketing department, Andhra Pradesh is a State which cultivates three tomato crops a year and the short gaps between these crops sometimes leads to price fluctuations. Tomato prices in Andhra Pradesh are expected to settle down in middle of July as the crop yield has increased in several tomato producing areas in the State.