Continuous rainfall in recent days has caused damage to farmland across the state, with leafy vegetable growers reporting losses. This has reduced arrivals in retail markets and pushed up prices for consumers.
Retailers reported a 30% increase in prices for coriander and spinach, as well as tomatoes. Wholesale traders attributed the rise to disrupted supply, noting that crops have been affected by heavy showers.
Rajendra Suryavanshi, a wholesaler at the city-based agriculture produce market committee (APMC), said supply volumes have dropped and the situation may persist if rain continues. "A major quantity of produce being supplied in the market has been damaged by moisture due to the rain. So, prices of good-quality produce have gone up. The city market receives about 75% of its vegetable produce from rural parts of Pune and adjacent districts. Many of these pockets witnessed constant rain in the last week and more," he said. He added that potato and onion prices have remained stable, while tomatoes are up 20% in wholesale trade.
On Tuesday, around 1,450 vehicles arrived at the APMC market in Mandai, down from the usual daily average of 1,800. Another wholesaler estimated that the arrivals of vegetables had declined by 30–40% due to the weather. "Since leafy vegetables are a perishable product, farmers often prefer to sell them in the market before they spoil further. Retailers purchase this produce from the wholesale market, but about 20–30% of it goes to waste due to deterioration in quality," he said.
Consumers have seen the impact directly. A customer from Shivajinagar, Nanda Kulkarni, said a bunch of coriander or spinach was selling for more than Rs30 (US$0.36), with good quality leafy vegetables priced above Rs40 (US$0.48) per bunch. "There has been a rise in vegetable prices in the last few days. Retailers claim that the short supply of good-quality produce has impacted costs," she said.
Another consumer, Sonal Deshmukh, noted that price spikes often occur during festivals and when supplies are tight. "Produce like spinach, coriander, and fenugreek have recorded a rise in prices. We hope that a break in rainfall brings down rates," she said.
Source: Times of India