Karnataka - Bidar   

Tomato cultivators hit by price crash

By Our Staff Correspondent

BIDAR, JAN. 21. Despite producing a bumper tomato crop, Shankaraiah Swamy Seetalgera of Talmadagi in Humnabad taluk is a sad man.

Problems in transporting the produce to the markets and getting a remunerative price has forced him to leave nearly 12 tonnes of tomatoes grown on three acres untouched.

"Industries are declared sick when they stop producing or produce below their capacity. But farmers go bankrupt and are forced to commit suicide when they produce a bumper crop," he said. He also said that other tomato growers in the district face a similar situation and this is not the first time.

He went through the same crisis last year and could not recover the cost of cultivation after the prices crashed to less than Rs. 2 a kg. Mr. Swamy said that four tonnes of tomatoes an acre could be produced by spending around Rs. 8,000.

One could earn a profit only if the wholesale prices reached Rs. 3,000 a tonne. However, the current price is around Rs. 2,000 a tonne.

The price in the retail market is around Rs. 10 a kg.

Farmers complained that middlemen and wholesale dealers made all the profit. They wanted the Government to procure their produce through a market intervention scheme.

Agricultural scientists have suggested a comprehensive remedy involving reduction in the cost of cultivation, market research, and value addition by food processing.

Organic farming could help reduce cultivation costs and maintain the fertility of the soil. Farmers should study the market in different places in the State and then try to sell their produce.

They should also stop depending on wholesale dealers and sell their produce in parts to retailers, they said.

The growers of perishable commodities can explore the market and come together to produce products, such as tomato paste, dried chips, and jams.

Such products will fetch a better price than raw agricultural produce, a senior scientist at the Krishi Vigyan Kendra said.

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Tomato cultivators hit by price crash

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