According to a nationwide survey by Assocham, India’s leading business group, the growing cost of fresh tomatoes has hit urban family budgets hard, with around 78% of price-conscious households finding their finances squeezed.
It found that local grocers had ramped up their stock of tomato puree and ketchup, which now cost less than a kilo of fresh tomatoes.
Vegetables are increasingly becoming “unaffordable” as the prices skyrocket, particularly in metros and major cities, said DS Rawat, secretary general of Assocham.
Prices have increased to Rs80-100 per kilo (US$1.19-1.49)—almost doubling from the previous month’s levels—due to tight supply from major growing states in the south, where the late-harvest crop was damaged at the flowering stage through severe drought, the study found.
About 56% of the survey’s respondents said that they had cut their use of tomatoes and now preferred dishes with processed tomatoes, lady finger or pumpkin, while some have been substituting tomato with raw mango to get a sour taste.
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Potassium bromate banned following bakery investigation
The long-running potassium bromate in bread affair seems to have reached a conclusion, after India’s food regulator banned the chemical—a common bakery additive.
The ban follows an investigation by the Centre for Science and Environment, an NGO, which uncovered widespread use of the additive among bakeries and fast-food chains.
The ban is unlikely to affect the Rs300bn (US$4.4bn) bread industry, as a majority of bakers had stopped using the additive after the CSE released its report last month, according to the president of All India Bread Manufacturers' Association, which represents India’s top baking brands, including Britannia, Harvest Gold and Modern.
FSSAI notified food manufacturers this week of the ruling, saying the "use of potassium bromate as an additive in any food is not allowed".
While potassium bromate was used largely because of its low price, the AIBMA said that the cost of production was unlikely to increase now due to alternatives, such as ascorbic acid.
Potassium bromate, another ingredient with questionable safety uncovered by the CSE investigation, has been referred to the FSSAI’s scientific panel, with a view to remove it from the list of permissible food additives.
Herb and spice update: Pepper, coriander, chilli prices up; ginger on the wane
Pepper prices have declined year on year, supported by ample production volumes seen in Vietnam for the 2016 crop, with early production estimates at 160,000 tonnes, sharply up on the year.
Global demand has been weak so far this year, as buyers expected lower prices in the short-term, thus delaying buying decisions. Low global stocks have limited any sharp price declines, according to commodities analyst Mintec.
Coriander prices, meanwhile, have also declined, from the peak reached in mid-2015 due to good availability as arrivals have increased over the past few months. Demand for high-quality produce has been normal, thus supporting steady prices. In addition, higher coriander output for the 2015/16 season in India has also contributed to the decline in prices, with production forecast at 500,000 tonnes, an increase on last year.
Prices for Indian chilli have risen significantly, once again up on 2015, due to reduced production volumes in India, combined with increased demand from overseas markets, mostly from China.
While production for Indian chilli was expected to decline, which was the case, higher prices over the last few months have prompted farmers to increase the plantings for the 2016/17 crop, which is due to begin in July.
Indian ginger prices have declined significantly over the last year due to the arrival of a new crop, combined with higher ginger output for the 2015/16 season. Although Indian ginger production figures for the 2015/16 season have not yet been published, production is forecast to increase, following higher prices over the last two seasons, which prompted farmers to set more area area aside for the crop.
While production is forecast to rise, a decline in yield has been seen due to unfavourable weather conditions throughout the monsoon season.