Thiruvananthapuram: With vegetable prices rising every day, both small scale and wholesalers have low hopes for the coming days. onam Season. Vegetables whose prices are skyrocketing mainly include tomatoes, chillies and beans.
According to vegetable vendors in Chalai, market rates started seeing such changes about a month ago due to shortfall in production Tamil Nadu and Karnataka. Last week, between Sunday and Monday alone, tomato prices shot up from Rs 1,400 to Rs 2,400 per quintal. “Tomatoes were cheap till about a month ago, but are now Rs 120 per kg. We are told this is because of the shortage of vegetables in the Mysore and Hosur markets, the two regions from where tomatoes are usually sourced. The same can be said about beans and chillies, both of which currently retail for more than Rs 100,” said Madhu, a vegetable shop owner.
This results in lower sales as caterers and home consumers reduce the amount they normally buy. Also, after the pandemic, people started buying groceries from shops close to home or depended on malls and hypermarkets where everything is available under one roof. Another vegetable vendor, Ravindran Nair, said, “We are no longer crowded after the pandemic.”
According to vegetable vendors in Chalai, market rates started seeing such changes about a month ago due to shortfall in production Tamil Nadu and Karnataka. Last week, between Sunday and Monday alone, tomato prices shot up from Rs 1,400 to Rs 2,400 per quintal. “Tomatoes were cheap till about a month ago, but are now Rs 120 per kg. We are told this is because of the shortage of vegetables in the Mysore and Hosur markets, the two regions from where tomatoes are usually sourced. The same can be said about beans and chillies, both of which currently retail for more than Rs 100,” said Madhu, a vegetable shop owner.
This results in lower sales as caterers and home consumers reduce the amount they normally buy. Also, after the pandemic, people started buying groceries from shops close to home or depended on malls and hypermarkets where everything is available under one roof. Another vegetable vendor, Ravindran Nair, said, “We are no longer crowded after the pandemic.”