Drastic drop in cauliflower rates has vegetable growers worried
Vegetable growers are facing a double whammy as the failure of the pea crop this season has been followed by a drastic drop in the price of cauliflower.
The vegetable, which is cultivated on nearly 22,000 hectares in the state, is being procured by traders at a meagre ₹2 per kilogram, while the retail price in the local market remains around ₹15 to ₹20.
For farmers like Harwinder Singh, who cultivates cauliflower, the drop in prices has been devastating. The cost of cultivation of an acre of cauliflower ranges between ₹30,000 and ₹40,000.
“Add to that the cost of harvesting and packaging, which is ₹1.5 per kg, and the cost of transportation to mandis. The dip in prices has caused huge losses to farmers like me.”
As per Punjab Agricultural University’s department of economics, the cost of cultivation of one kilogram of cauliflower comes around ₹4.5 to ₹5. Farmers claimed that harvesting the crop when the prices are too low is not profitable.
Lakhbir Singh Nizampura, president of the Vegetable Growers Association, said the traders claim that the transport of vegetables to Jammu and Kashmir has been disrupted due to snowfall, leading to a drop in prices.
However, farmers are skeptical about this explanation and feel that they are being exploited by traders.
‘MSP a necessity’
“Interestingly, when I went to the vegetable market, I noted that the cauliflower was being sold for ₹7 per kg. At shops in decent residential areas, consumers are still paying ₹30 per kg,” said Nizampura, adding that this is the reason why farmers want MSP.
Shailender Kaur, Director of Horticulture, Punjab, acknowledges that the crisis is real and that the government is already working to strengthen post-harvest technologies.
“We need to have more post-harvest processing centers to ensure that farmers get a better price for their produce,” she said.
The government is already making efforts in this direction, and an IQF (individual quick freezing) centre is being set up at Verka. IQF is a food processing technique that freezes food items individually at a rapid rate.
Kaur added that food processing is the key to ensuring a better demand for crops like cauliflower during periods of glut. “The prices were profitable earlier this season. But we need to find ways to sustain that demand throughout the year,” he said.
