States » WestPosted at: Oct 24 2026 9:11PM


Nashik: Tomato prices crash to Rs 80-100 per 20 kg crate; farmers abandon crops as losses mount

Bharat Ghandat
Nashik, Oct 24 (UNI) Tomato growers in Nashik district are facing another major financial crisis as prices have plunged to rock-bottom levels in the market. A 20-kg crate of tomatoes is fetching just Rs 80 to Rs 100, leaving farmers struggling to recover even the cost of harvesting and transporting their produce to market yards.
With prices falling below the cost of basic operations, several farmers have reportedly decided to leave tomatoes unharvested in their fields rather than incur further losses.
Tomato farmers are left with just Rs 25–Rs 45 per 20-kg crate after accounting for harvesting and transportation expenses. With market selling prices ranging between Rs 80 and Rs 100 per crate, farmers spend around Rs 20 on harvesting labour and another Rs 35 on transportation to the market yard, taking their total costs to Rs 55 per crate and significantly reducing their earnings.
After deducting Rs 55 towards harvesting and transportation, farmers are left with just Rs 25 to Rs 45 per crate. This translates to approximately Rs 1.25 to Rs 2.25 per kg, without accounting for cultivation expenses.
The cost of land preparation, seeds, expensive chemical fertilisers, pesticides, irrigation and months of hard work remains unaccounted for. Once these expenses are included, farmers are pushed into substantial losses.
Farmers had expected prices to recover after Navratri. They believe that restrictions at borders, reduced demand from other states and disruptions to exports during the festive period contributed to the initial decline in prices.
However, even after the festival ended and the movement of goods and trade operations reportedly returned to normal, tomato prices continued to fall instead of recovering.
Since tomatoes are highly perishable, farmers cannot store the produce for extended periods while waiting for better prices. They are therefore left with little choice but to sell their crops at whatever rates traders offer, even when the returns fail to cover basic expenses.
Farmers are already grappling with multiple challenges, including drought-like conditions, the threat of unseasonal rainfall, rising input prices and increasing labour costs. The collapse in tomato prices has further intensified their distress.
With harvesting and transportation becoming financially unviable, some farmers have reportedly allowed cattle to graze on standing tomato crops, while others have left the produce to rot in their fields.
“How can farming remain viable if the sweat and hard work of farmers have no value in the market? Agriculture can survive only if farmers survive,” local growers said, expressing anger and frustration over the situation.
Against this backdrop, farmers across Nashik district are demanding immediate government intervention. Their key demands include a fair and remunerative minimum support price for tomatoes, financial compensation for losses and concrete measures to boost exports and promote food-processing industries to ensure better market opportunities for growers.
With prices failing to cover even basic harvesting and transportation costs, tomato farmers are calling for urgent relief to prevent further financial losses and protect their livelihoods.
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