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Bringing the tangy flavour of tomatoes to daily meals is proving to be an expensive endeavour for the common man now as the price of tomatoes has surged significantly in the past week. The

sudden spike in tomato prices has placed a burden yet again on the pockets of commoners after experiencing a similar hike in lemon rates. In Odisha's Bhubaneshwar, the price of tomatoes

 touched Rs. 120 per kg in the retail market while two weeks ago, its rate was Rs. 25-30 per kg. Meanwhile, in several parts of Karnataka, tomatoes are being sold at Rs. 70-80 per kg while

three months ago it was only Rs. 10 per kg. The people of Andhra Pradesh are also flabbergasted after seeing a sudden spurt in the price of tomatoes which are selling at Rs. 60-70 per kg

while a month ago it was mere Rs. 10. The same is the condition of people in Tamil Nadu and other regions of the country. 1. LESS PRODUCTION OWING TO AN INCREASE IN HEAT  The production of

tomatoes depends predominantly on the temperature because, under high-temperature conditions, the fertility rate of tomato flowers is significantly lowered, leading to flower drop and

reduced fruit setting. When exposed to multiple days of daily temperatures above 29 °C and nighttime temperatures above 21 °C, tomato plants drop flowers and reproduction is substantially

hampered at day temperatures above 35 °C. Tomato flower drops can also occur within four hours after being exposed to temperatures exceeding 40 °C during the day. With heatwaves prevailing

in several parts of India, the production of tomatoes is hampered, which is affecting the supply side, further resulting in an increase in price. Due to Cyclone Asani, several parts of

Odisha, and Andhra Pradesh witnessed a surge in tomato prices as their supply was suspended for days. In Bhubaneshwar, the supply of tomatoes was suspended for three days, as prices

skyrocketed to over Rs. 100. 3. LESS SUPPLY DUE TO LOWER PRICES Earlier, the prices of Tomates dropped to Rs. 10 per kg and in several parts of the country it even came down to Rs. 6 per kg

because of the huge supply. This brought losses to the farmers and anticipating these losses, many farmers did not maintain the crop which resulted in less production of tomatoes. It is

pertinent to mention that the Economic Survey of this year stated that the government should develop strategies to incentivise tomato and onion production during the lean season to check

price rises. According to the Survey, "Seasonality in prices resulting from seasonal production patterns require policy attention. Strategies to incentivise production during the lean

season should be designed".