Veg price hike: Veg thali’s cost rises as non-veg thali gets cheaper

New Delhi: Since November 2023, the price of the home-cooked vegetarian thali has been rising. In June, the price of a home-cooked vegetarian thali increased by 10% (year on year), while the price of a non-vegetarian thali decreased by 4%, according to a report released on Friday.

The price of tomatoes, onions, and potatoes surged by 30%, 46%, and 59%, respectively, increasing the cost of the vegetarian thali, largely due to the low base of the previous fiscal year.

“Tomatoes, onions and potatoes have been the key contributors to this rise as adverse weather conditions have impacted their supply,” said Pushan Sharma, Director-Research, CRISIL Market Intelligence and Analytics.

Going forward, thali prices are expected to be lower on-year due to the high base of last fiscal, when tomato prices had surged.

“Sequentially, though, tomato prices will rise before correcting at the end of August as fresh supplies arrive from southern and western states,” said Sharma.

According to the CRISIL report, the prices surged because of lower onion arrivals due to a significant drop in rabi acreage, a decline in yield for potato crops due to unseasonal rainfall in March, and virus infestation in tomato summer crops due to high temperatures in key growing regions of Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh that tamped tomato arrivals down 35 per cent on-year.

For non-veg thali, the decrease in cost was due to an estimated decline of 14 per cent on-year in broiler prices on a high base of last fiscal, coupled with an oversupply situation and lower feed cost on-year. However, the cost of both veg and non-veg thalis increased month-on-month, by 6 per cent and 4 per cent, respectively, said the report.

With inputs from IANS