The Department of Consumer Affairs has directed National Cooperative Consumers’ Federation Limted (NCCF) and National Agricultural Co-Operative Marketing Federation Of India Limited (NAFED) to sell tomatoes at retail price of Rs.40 per kg from August 20, 2023, in view of the continued decline in tomato prices in the wholesale and retail markets.

The retail sale of tomatoes in Delhi-NCR had started from July 14, 2023. Till date, over 15 lakh kg of tomato had been procured by the two agencies which are being continuously disposed of to the retail consumers in major consumption centres in the country.

These locations include Delhi-NCR, Rajasthan (Jaipur, Kota), Uttar Pradesh (Lucknow, Kanpur, Varanasi, Prayagraj) and Bihar (Patna, Muzaffarpur, Arrah, Buxar).

The retail price of tomatoes procured by NCCF and NAFED was initially fixed at Rs.90 per kg which had been successively reduced in line with the decline in prices in order to ensure benefits to the consumers.

The last downward revision of the retail price to Rs.50 per kg was on August 15, 2023, which now stands further reduced to Rs 40 per kg with effect from August 20, 2023.

It may be recalled that on the direction of Department of Consumer Affairs, NCCF and NAFED had commenced the procurement of tomato from mandis in Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka and Maharashtra for simultaneous disposal in major consumption centres where retails prices have recorded maximum increase in last one month.