Prices of Tomato & Other Vegetables have Skyrocketed as Rain Affects Supply

After rain disrupted supply, tomato prices in Madurai touched Rs.60-70/kg wholesale and Rs.100/kg retail on Wednesday. Other vegetables, such as brinjal, beans, tubers, and other root vegetables, have also increased in price by roughly Rs.20/kg, according to vegetable sellers.

Tomatoes cost Rs.100 per kg in Trichy. According to vendors from Gandhi market, one of the reasons for the increase in vegetable prices is the ongoing wedding season.

On a daily basis, 20 to 30 trucks of tomatoes arrive at Gandhi market from Andhra Pradesh, Bengaluru, Theni, and Oddanchathram. Rain over the previous several days, however, has disrupted normal supply, resulting to a price increase, according to C Prakash, a wholesale merchant from Gandhi Market.

The supply of vegetables, particularly tomatoes, was hampered after rain damaged fields, according to P S Murugan, president of the Madurai Central Vegetable Market Wholesale Traders Association. "The tomato price went up to Rs.100/kg a few days ago, but it has now fallen down to roughly Rs.60-70/kg," he added. Other crops, like brinjal and tiny bitter gourds, were selling for more than Rs.100/kg, he noted.

The supply of tomatoes has also declined owing to rain damage, according to S Manual Jayaraj, president of the Madurai Central Market Vegetable and Perishable Commodities Merchants Coordinated Association, Paravai.

"Only the second-best tomatoes are available at a reasonable cost. Due to a lack of supply, tuber prices have risen to about Rs.35-45/kg," he stated.

"Tomato prices have risen from Rs.40 per kg last week to around Rs.80 per kg this week. Most vegetable prices are up by around Rs.20-30/kg,” according to Ammaiyappan, a retail vegetable trader.

Tomatoes are grown on 1,000 acres of land at Manapparai, Vaiyampatty, in the Trichy district. During the rainy season, however, they choose to grow paddy. They plant tomatoes and green chillies only after the harvest, according to P Saravanan, a tomato farmer from Vaiyampatti in the district.

"It's common for the yield to drop during the rainy season when the blooms shed. As a result, poor arrival of vegetables to the market was inevitable," M Thangamani, a wholesale dealer from Gandhi market, said.

Tomatoes and other country vegetables such as brinjal, ladies finger, snake gourd, and broad beans are grown by farmers in Manapparai, Vaiyampatti. These country vegetables were also in low supply due to the rain, Thangamani stated.