Network Past Issues

Scenario of essential supply like Tomatoes from rural to urban areas
M.V. Durga Prasad and Vollance S Christian

Tomato is one of the essential commodities of the Indian market. The total area under tomato cultivation in India is about 4.97 lakh hectares, which is about 7.3% of the total cropped land under vegetables. The annual production of tomatoes in India is 16,826.38 thousand tons. India is ranked 3rd after China and the US as far as the production of tomatoes is concerned. India has experienced considerable increase in the production of tomatoes over the past 10 years.

Marketing of tomatoes is done by middlemen present in vegetable markets who are least interested in farmers or consumers’ well-being. The middlemen involved in the value chain of tomatoes can be classified into two categories, namely, the market commissioning agents and traders. Market commissioning agents operate at market level and pay a fixed percent of charges to the government. Traders, on the other hand, are w h o l e s a l e r s who purchase tomatoes from one market or directly from farmers and sell the latter to markets of other states to realize the profits on their purchase. Market commissioning agents maintain a good relationship with the same professionals operating at other markets all over India. These middlemen are supposed to play a vital role in matching demand with supply in the market. India has experienced tremendous change in the supply pattern of tomatoes, particularly from the local supply in urban areas to the global supply chain. In one way this can be interpreted as farmers getting an opportunity to sell in the market situated in any part of India. A majority of the Indian population living in urban cities are engaged in non-farm industrial activities with high incomes. These urban cities have become major markets with a high demand for vegetables like tomatoes. This latent demand is satisfied by supply from rural villages that are major producers and supplier of tomatoes. Thus, it is important to maintain regularity in the supply of essential commodities at reasonable prices for different classes of urban consumers. Institutions like the government should intervene to ensure supplies of essential commodities to all cities with price control.

Andhra Pradesh is the highest producer of tomatoes in India with a yearly production of 5962.21 thousand tons. Andhra Pradesh contributed to around 35% of total tomato production in India. However, the total demand for tomatoes in Andhra Pradesh is only 7% of India’s demand. This shows that 80% of the produce in Andhra Pradesh has to be either exported to other states or it should be processed and sold as finished goods all over India. Otherwise it adversely affects both ends, namely sellers as well as urban consumers in the value chain of tomatoes. Concentrated hubs of tomato production in Andhra Pradesh are Madanapalle, Kurnool, and Adilabad. Karnataka is the second largest producer of tomatoes in India. Major tomato producing regions of Karnataka are Kolar, Chintamani, and rural Bangalore. As the two neighbouring states Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh happen to be major producers, there exists a conflict of interest in terms of non participation of outside farmers at the market level for selling tomatoes although the government issues each farmers with a unique ID through which famers can sell their produce in any part of India. By eliminating competition from outside farmers and sellers from local regions can gain more profit due to supply shortages. Maharashtra is also one of the major producers of tomatoes in India. In Maharashtra Nashik, Sangamner are the major tomato producing regions. Tomatoes from Nashik are supplied to Orissa, Gujarat, and even to the northern states of Punjab if required.

Orissa is considered to be the third largest producer of tomatoes in India. But it sources tomatoes from Nashik, Madanapalle and Kolar during shortages, particularly in summer. In Orissa, due to the demand by middlemen for the hybrid variety tomatoes, farmers have switched from desi variety to hybrid although there is a high demand for the former in the local market. Gujarat too is one of the major suppliers of tomatoes during its peak harvest season i.e. from January to April. From Gujarat tomatoes are supplied to northern parts of India including Punjab. In Gujarat tomatoes can be cultivated only during winter while throughout the rest of the year Gujarat gets tomatoes from Nashik, Kolar, and Madanapalle. Peak harvest season in Punjab is during the month of April to June. Kapurthala and Patiala are the concentrated hubs of tomato production in Punjab. Punjab, like Gujarat, is a major supplier of tomatoes during its peak harvest season. During this period tomatoes from Punjab are supplied to Delhi, Gujarat, even Pakistan. As Pakistan is a major importer of tomatoes from Punjab (India), the stake of farmers in Punjab depends a lot on the trade relationship between the two countries. In Punjab the local owners have stopped cultivation of tomatoes and are now giving their land on lease to immigrant laborers from Uttar Pradesh for cultivation.

In India Nashik, Kolar, and Madanapalle are the three major concentrated hubs for production and supply of tomatoes all over India. These regions are located in an agro-climate zone in which year round cultivation of tomatoes is possible. During shortages in any part of India tomatoes from these hubs are supplied to various parts of India depending on their requirement. Usually, throughout the year, such shortages occur at some places in India. Tomatoes from these hubs are supplied to even neighbouring countries like Bangladesh. Farmers at these hubs do follow a cooperative approach in tomato cultivation resulting in considerable quantity of tomatoes arriving at the market level throughout the year. Farmers at these hubs follow crop rotations to maintain the fertility of the soil. Constant supply from these hubs to the market throughout the year go to show that the farmers are not dependent on the time of cultivation as high price period at the market has high risk in yield too. Hence farmers belonging to these hubs are optimistic and confident of getting reasonable prices in any period. In rare instances is the demand for tomatoes at the market so less that it causes huge loss to the farmer.

Thus, for a sustainable growth of tomato production in India it is essential to maintain profitability in tomato cultivation to ensure its continuity. To bridge the existing communication gap among stakeholders which causes linkage deficit between stakeholders and inaccurate prediction of demand an online system can help match demand and supply of tomatoes. Proper development of infrastructure at the Indian markets is necessary for maximizing efficiency in the marketing channel which helps in the smooth sale of fruits and vegetables. Also, it minimizes wastage of vegetables in the market due to handling of highly perishable products by laborers. 

Authors can be contacted:  dprasad@irma.ac.in  ; vollance@irma.ac.in