Price crash leaves potato, tomato farmers in deep losses in Sangareddy

A sharp fall in vegetable prices has left potato and tomato farmers in Sangareddy and surrounding districts facing severe losses. With wholesale prices as low as Rs.4 to Rs.5 per kg, many farmers are planning to abandon their crops.

Sangareddy: The sharp decline in vegetable prices has left potato and tomato farmers staring at serious losses.

Farmers are hardly getting Rs.5 per kg in the wholesale market, making it difficult to recover even the harvesting and transport charges. With no returns in sight, many are abandoning their crops. While most of the potato cultivation is concentrated in the Zaheerabad area of Sangareddy district, tomato cultivation is spread across the erstwhile Medak region, with farmers in Gajwel and Dubbak cultivating significant acreage. In Siddipet district alone, tomatoes are cultivated on nearly 1,000 acres.

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Farmers spend nearly Rs.80,000 to Rs.90,000 per acre on cultivating tomatoes and potatoes. Leave alone recovering their investment, they fear further losses by harvesting and transporting the produce to markets, prompting several to prepare to abandon the crop. Swaroop Reddy, a potato farmer from Kohir, said he was offered Rs.550 per quintal in the Zaheerabad market. T Yellesham, a tomato farmer from Siddipet district, said he was offered only Rs.4 per kg.

With little hope of earning profits, many farmers have decided not to harvest the crop. They alleged that the lack of planning by the Horticulture department in regulating vegetable cultivation was taking a toll on them. The farmers urged the government to set up storage units and processing industries to protect the farming community from recurring losses. In the retail market, tomatoes and potatoes are being sold at Rs.10 to Rs.20 per kg.