Now Reading: Tomato prices rise as arrivals slump at Madanapalle market
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Tomato prices rise as arrivals slump at Madanapalle market
Corrected 1 October 2026: arrivals fell by about 30% in a day (88 to 62 tonnes), not 70%.
The Story in Brief
Tomato prices climbed in Andhra Pradesh's Rayalaseema districts after arrivals at Asia’s largest tomato market in Madanapalle dropped sharply. Only 62 metric tonnes reached the yard on Wednesday (30 September), down from 88 tonnes the previous day.
First-grade tomatoes fetched Rs 410 for a 10-kg box, up from Rs 330 on Tuesday (29 September). In retail markets across Madanapalle, Kadapa, Tirupati and Kurnool, tomatoes sold at Rs 45 to Rs 50 a kg. The Madanapalle market, which normally handles 900 to 1,300 tonnes a day in peak season, is seeing lean arrivals due to adverse weather and increased festival harvesting.
Traders said demand from other states during Dasara, Diwali and the Ayyappa Deeksha season could keep local prices around Rs 50 a kg or higher unless arrivals improve. The market is known for sharp volatility: first-grade tomatoes hit Rs 1,400 for 10 kg in June 2023 and crashed to Rs 9 a kg last year.
Indian Opinion Analysis
The 30% single-day drop in arrivals at Madanapalle, from 88 to 62 tonnes, which handles about Rs 350 crore in trade annually, has already pushed wholesale first-grade prices up by 24% in a day. The crunch stems from adverse weather and festival-linked harvesting, not from a single event. With weekly outflows of 2,000 to 3,000 tonnes to states like Telangana, Maharashtra and Delhi, the supply squeeze will ripple beyond Andhra Pradesh. The key pressure point is the next month: demand from Dasara, Diwali and the Ayyappa season will keep retail prices near Rs 50 unless arrivals recover sharply.
Corrected 1 October 2026: arrivals fell by about 30% in a day (88 to 62 tonnes), not 70%.
Source: thehindu.com
This brief was synthesised by AI from the source linked above. Methodology and corrections.
