Vegetables have turned dearer in Coimbatore, impacting households.
M. Rajendran, president of the Thyagi Kumaran Market Vegetable Traders Association, said the wholesale price of beans was ₹220 a kg on Tuesday and that of carrot was ₹55. Small onions cost ₹55 a kg and big onions were sold at ₹25 a kg minimum in the wholesale markets.
Country beans was ₹80 a kg and cauliflower ₹43 a kg. The prices, including that of tomatoes, would shoot up next month, he said.
Unseasonal rain in the vegetable growing areas had affected production. Coimbatore market used to get almost 1,000 tonnes of vegetables a day and the current arrivals were just 40%. “Even if the arrivals increase, the sales will be low at the current price levels,” he said.
The prices started going up a month ago and are expected to go up next month.
A leading hotelier in Coimbatore said restaurants normally took into account seasonal jump in prices of essentials, including vegetables. However, prices of almost all ingredients had shot up now - rice, pulses and vegetables. “There will be a tipping point. If the prices continue to go up, hotels will have no option, but to increase the prices for customers,” he said.
