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Just a mere month ago, farmers in Maharashtra went to great lengths to safeguard their tomato crops, even resorting to placing these prized kitchen staples under CCTV surveillance, all while receiving ₹200 per kg for their harvest. However, today, as prices have plummeted to a mere ₹2- 5 per kg, farmers who transport their tomatoes to Agricultural Produce Market Committees (APMCs) are left with no choice but to discard their produce along the roadside, as they can’t even cover the transportation costs to take the tomatoes back.
Due to a surplus production and an increasing supply, the prices of tomatoes in several APMCs in Maharashtra have plummeted to ₹200 per quintal. Just a couple of weeks ago, the highest price for tomatoes in Aurangabad APMC was a staggering ₹8,000 per quintal, with other APMCs trading tomatoes at similar rates.
However, due to the surplus supply, prices have now dropped to a meagre ₹80 paise per kg in Latur, prompting farmers to discard their produce and initiate protests.
According to traders, the surge in tomato prices over the past few months led many farmers to turn to tomato cultivation, resulting in an oversupply situation. Additionally, the closure of markets during the G-20 summit disrupted supply to the Delhi market, contributing to the decline in prices.
Why the roadside dumping?
Farmers who cannot even afford the transportation costs to retrieve their produce from the APMC face yet another dilemma. “What will we do with the tomatoes? Once they are harvested, the shelf-life of tomatoes is just a few days. We lack proper storage facilities or processing units,” says Raju Nikam, a farmer from Nashik.
Data shows that tomato processing remains a highly neglected sector in India, despite the wide-ranging applications of processed tomato products in households, the food processing industry, snack foods, hotels, restaurants, and fast food retail chains. India accounts for 11 per cent of global tomato production, yet less than 1 per cent of India’s tomato production is processed.
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