McDonald's India North & East announced on Friday that it was "temporarily" dropping tomatoes from its menu due to a seasonal issue in procurement.
"We are constrained to hold tomatoes for the time being," a company spokesperson said in a statement, citing the "non-availability of tomatoes meeting our quality standards due to seasonal crop issues arising out of farm fields in a few regions". The fast food chain said that it continues to serve tomatoes on its menu in restaurants in the Punjab-Chandigarh area, where it is able to source adequate tomatoes.
Social media was also abuzz, with users sharing photos of the notices put up by the stores.
Effects of skyrocketing prices of tomatoes 🍅
Tomato to miss from burgers at McDonalds outlets in Delhi. pic.twitter.com/RiQ5g5dir3While McDonald's India North & East has not attributed the lack of tomatoes in its menu to the surging prices, they have shot up as high as Rs 152 per kg in Kolkata and Rs 120 per kg in Delhi. In Bengaluru, the prices spiked to Rs 110 per kg, while prices were ruling at Rs 117 per kg in Chennai, according to data from the consumer affairs ministry. A maximum rate of Rs 162 per kg was quoted in Shahjahanpur, Uttar Pradesh, the data showed.
Tomatoes usually become expensive in the lean production months of June and July, but the impact this year has increased.
The high prices have been attributed to a combination of factors, including the prevailing heatwave in key producing areas and heavy rainfall, that have disrupted harvests. Additionally, transportation of highly perishable commodity supplies gets affected due to the monsoon. Tomatoes have a relatively shorter shelf life, which has also impacted prices.
However, several state governments have taken cognizance of the issue.
To alleviate the burden on consumers, the Tamil Nadu government has started selling tomatoes at a subsidised rate of Rs 60 per kg at ration shops in Chennai. In West Bengal, the Mamata Banerjee-led government has directed its own retailing network, Sufal Bangala, to deliver fair prices at Rs 115 per kg.
McDonald's is run by the Sanjeev Agrawal-led MMG Agrawal Group in north and east India, while Westlife Group, led by BL Bhatia, is the partner for west and south India.
The west and south franchises also said that 10–15% of their stores have stopped serving tomatoes. However, it has also called it a "temporary" issue and said that the operators are working to get the supplies back.
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