Tomato Prices in Mashhad Reach 18,000 Tomans Each

In the past three weeks, the price of tomatoes in the Mashhad market has quadrupled, reaching about 18,000 tomans per piece. This price increase has not only affected family budgets but has also caused problems for restaurants and small businesses that are unable to adapt to such seasonal price changes. According to experts, the reason for this price increase is related to production issues and climatic impacts, including early cold spells and summer heat, which have reduced the area under tomato cultivation. According to the newspaper Etemad, the head of the Mashhad Fruit and Vegetable Sellers Union cited problems such as a shortage of vehicles and labor and weather conditions as reasons for the persistent high prices. Ghanbari expressed hope that with the start of the harvest from warmer regions, prices would decrease and lower prices would be observed in the market next week. The head of the Mashhad Fruit and Vegetable Sellers Union announced that the price of first-grade tomatoes is currently 35,000 tomans per kilogram, but after adding a profit margin of 30 to 35 percent, it reaches 45,000 to 50,000 tomans. He confirmed the impact of exports on prices and stated that this trend should be regulated for the benefit of both farmers and consumers. Ghanbari added that since November 6, tomato prices have increased due to exports and cultivation in warmer regions. He claimed that prices would decrease in the next week to ten days, with first-grade tomatoes reaching about 25,000 tomans. In the continuation of this report, the Deputy for Improvement and Plant Production of the Khorasan Agricultural Jihad stated that the reason for the increase in tomato prices is the reduction in production caused by early cold and severe summer heat, which led to a decrease in the area under cultivation and damage to the crop. He noted that in addition to this, power outages in agricultural wells also had a negative impact. According to him, due to these conditions, farmers have turned to planting alternative crops. The head of the Mashhad Fruit and Vegetable Sellers Union further stated that the expected production for this year was about 500,000 tons, but due to climatic damages, only 450,000 tons were harvested, and the area under cultivation decreased from 11,000 hectares to 9,000 hectares.