The wholesale market in Pune has reduced tomato costs to Rs 5 per kg.
Digital Desk: Following a spike above Rs 200/kg till around a month ago, tomato prices have drastically decreased. Since prices have dropped to Rs 3-5 per kg due to the abundant crop, farmers in Maharashtra are now obliged to destroy their crops.
According to Nashik farmer Sachin Holkar, "minimum support price for tomatoes and onions is the only way to prevent such market fluctuations." Even when they were able to recoup half of their expenses, some farmers were unable to sell their produce. At a throwaway price of Rs 2 per kilogram, they had to sell. In order to grow tomatoes on an acre of land, a farmer needs a capital of Rs 2 lakh.
The wholesale market in Pune has reduced tomato costs to Rs 5 per kg. The average wholesale cost of tomatoes in the three wholesale markets of Pipalgaon, Nashik, and Lasalgaon decreased from Rs 2,000 per crate (20 kg) to Rs 90 in the past six weeks.
Tomatoes are being sold in retail markets in Kolhapur at Rs 2 to 3 per kg. Approximately a month ago, it cost roughly Rs 220 per kg. As wholesale market prices have dropped over the past few weeks, farmers in the Pune district's Junnar and Ambegaon tehsils stopped cultivating tomatoes.
The biggest wholesale tomato market in Maharashtra, Pimpalgaon APMC, has daily auctions for almost 2 lakh crates of tomatoes. According to data provided by the state agriculture department, the average area of tomato cultivation in the Nashik district is around 17,000 hectares, with a production of 6 lakh metric tonnes. However, this year, tomato cultivation more than doubled to 35,000 hectares, with an estimated production of 12.17 lakh metric tonnes. Many farmers began growing tomatoes in July in the hopes of making quick money when wholesale prices in Pune district's Narayangaon market rose to Rs 3,200 per crate.
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