Cost of non-veg thali rose slowly compared to veg thali, since the price of broiler, comprising more than 50 percent of the total, remained stable
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The fury of nature continued to increase food prices in July as key items like tomato, potato and onion became expensive due to high temperatures and whitefly infestations. The average cost of a home-cooked vegetarian thali jumped 11 percent to Rs 32.6 in July from Rs 29.4 in June as per Crisil MI&A Research estimates. Most of the cost rise is attributed to tomato prices, which surged 55 percent month-on-month (m-o-m). In July tomato cost Rs 66 per kg, while in June it was Rs 42 per kg. This is mainly due to high temperatures impacting the summer crop in Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh.
Besides, scattered rainfall in May in Karnataka escalated whitefly infestations, thereby impacting the tomato output.
Onion and potato prices also rose 20 percent and 16 percent m-o-m in July, respectively, further contributing to the higher cost of the veg thali. While lower rabi production impacted onion prices, late blight infestation in Punjab, Gujarat and Uttar Pradesh affected potato output.