The skyrocketing prices of tomatoes would likely go down by February, an official of the Department of Agriculture (DA) said on Monday, Jan. 6.
According to the DA’s price monitoring on January 4, tomato prices in Metro Manila markets range between ₱200 and ₱300 per kilo.
Assistant Secretary Arnel De Mesa, the spokesperson for the DA, said during a press briefing that the steep rise in tomato prices was due to the series of typhoons last year that severely affected crops in their vegetative and productive phases.
Such, he said, resulted in significant supply shortages for tomatoes, which saw a 45 percent reduction going into the fourth quarter of last year.
“So ‘yan, doon ‘yung pinakamalaki ‘yung 45 percent reduction in volume of production (That’s where the largest drop occurred, with a 45 percent decline in production volume),” De Mesa said.
“Sabi nila rito production may resume
this January until February, start din ng dry season, and then expectedly prices can go back to normal during this period by February, end of January or early February (They said that production may resume this January until February, coinciding with the start of the dry season. Prices are expected to return to normal during this period, by the end of January or early February),” he added.
There are even reports that some retailers in the metropolis are selling tomatoes at ₱400 a kilo.