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Informist, Friday, Aug. 8, 2025

NEW DELHI – The central government has stepped in to cool down prices of tomato in Delhi, procuring the commodity from wholesale markets and selling into retail markets, a release by the Ministry of Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution read. 

In lieu of this, the National Cooperative Consumers' Federation of India has been procuring tomatoes from Delhi's Azadpur Mandi since Aug. 4 to provide relief to consumers facing elevated prices due to recent adverse weather, the release said. The agency, it said, is then selling these tomatoes at minimal margins both through its stationary outlets--including Nehru Place, Udyog Bhawan, Patel Chowk, and Rajiv Chowk--and through 6–7 mobile vans across the city. So far, the federation has sold 27,307 kilograms of tomatoes at retail prices ranging between INR 47 and INR 60 per kg, adjusted according to procurement costs, the releases stated. 

Informist had, on Jul. 11, exclusively reported that the ministry had instructed the National Cooperative Consumers' Federation of India Ltd. to collaborate with Mother Dairy to intervene in the tomato market as soon as the average modal price exceeds INR 60 per kilogram.

Heavy rainfalls across northern and north-western India since the last week of July have caused tomato prices in Delhi to soar as high as INR 85 per kg by the end of the month, the statement read. However, the recent stabilisation in daily arrivals at the Azadpur mandi has initiated a downward trend in both wholesale and retail prices, with the current average price in Delhi now at INR 73 per kg, it said.

In contrast, major metros like Chennai and Mumbai, largely unaffected by these weather disruptions, report much lower tomato prices at INR 50 per kg and INR 58 per kg, respectively.

Overall, food commodity prices across India have remained largely stable in 2025, as indicated by a 14% drop in the cost of a homemade thali in July. The all-India average tomato retail price stands at INR 52 per kg--lower than both the previous year's INR 54 per kg and substantially below the INR 136 per kg seen in 2023. Department of Consumer Affairs attributes most recent price volatility to localised, temporary factors, rather than any fundamental supply-demand gap.

"Unlike in previous years, this monsoon has not seen major spikes in the prices of key vegetables like potato, onion, and tomato," the government said. Higher production of potatoes and onions in 2024-25 has ensured improved supply and retail prices below last year's levels. The government's procurement of 300,000 tonnes of onion for its price stabilisation buffer, with calibrated releases set to commence from September, is expected to further enhance price stability for consumers, according to the statement.  End

Reported by Pallavi Singhal

Edited by Akul Nishant Akhoury

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