Skyrocketing tomato prices have forced consumers to turn to alternatives like puree and ketchup to keep the kitchen budget intact. This has led to a supply dearth across supermarket shelves and grocery apps.
E-grocers such as BigBasket, Amazon, Flipkart and Zepto showed 'out-of-stock' for puree packs sold by Dabur India Ltd., Hershey's and Hindustan Unilever Ltd. The item was not reflecting in the menu of the Swiggy Instamart app.
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An official from Dabur, who spoke on the condition of anonymity, confirmed a surge in demand for its tomato puree. The publicly listed consumer goods maker, however, refrained from sharing more details, citing a silent period before the quarterly earnings.
Tomatoes usually become expensive in the lean production months of June and July, but the impact this year has been excessive. Prices of tomatoes are currently retailing between Rs 100-200 per kg, in different parts of the country. In the Delhi-NCR region, retail prices remained as high as Rs 199 per kg on Friday.
The soaring prices are attributed to a combination of factors, including heatwave in key producing areas and heavy rainfall, that has disrupted harvests. However, the government has taken cognisance of the issue.
The central government has directed its agricultural marketing agencies—the National Agricultural Cooperative Marketing Federation of India Ltd. and National Cooperative Consumers' Federation of India Ltd.—to immediately procure the staple vegetable from mandis, in key growing states like Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka and Maharashtra, and sell it at a discounted rate till prices cool down. In Delhi, the kitchen staple will be sold at Rs 90 per kg, according to the consumer affairs department.
"We have seen a 300% spike in demand for Safal tomato puree in the last 15 days," said a spokesperson of Mother Dairy Fruit and Vegetable Pvt., adding that the company has ramped up production to avoid short supply.
Large eateries have also removed tomato-based items from their menus.
A few days ago, McDonald's also told its customers that it was "constrained" to drop tomatoes from its menu, due to a seasonal issue in procurement. However, it has also called it a "temporary" issue and said that the operators are working to get the supplies back. The Subway outlets in Delhi have also quietly removed tomatoes from their veggie list.
Analysts, however, don't expect any immediate relief from the high prices.
"The lack of change in headline inflation in June masks a sequential pick-up in food prices," Barclays said in a note. "There does not appear to be any immediate relief on the food price front, as perishable prices, especially for tomatoes, chillies, and some spices, continue to trend higher."
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