INSUBCONTINENT EXCLUSIVE:
KOLKATA: With kitchen budgets on a tight squeeze, households in Kolkata are making a 'small switch' - from fresh tomatoes to small cartons
of tomato puree, fresh ginger to single-use sachets of ginger paste and loose cumin powder to tiny 7-gm sachets
Demand for tomato puree packs has soared following the sharp rise in tomato prices that is currently hovering around Rs 125-140 per kg, up
from Rs 60 per kg a fortnight ago."Since last week I've been using tomato puree in my cooking and its value for money," said Sukanya Sinha,
a postgraduate student who lives in south Kolkata
Tomato puree pouches are available in smaller packs of 200 gm, which cost just Rs 25, she said.Janice Lee, director at a Chinese firm that
has been making sauces and food products for eight decades, said demand for tomato puree has hit unprecedented levels in recent days
An 800-gm pack of tomato puree pouch costs Rs 60, which is way more economical than cooking with tomatoes now, she said
"We can maintain the price because we acquire the annual stock in winter when tomato prices are at their lowest," she added
Cumin powder, which was Rs 550 a kg even a month ago, has shot up to Rs 800 a kg recently
"Cumin powder is an essential ingredient in most vegetarian and non-vegetarian Indian dishes
With its price soaring, I have started using sachet packs that are less expensive," said Soma Dey, a homemaker residing on Canal West
Road.Cumin powder sachets from different brands were till recently available in the city for as little as Rs 5 for 9 gm
"Last week, all cumin powder sachets in my shop were sold out
The fresh lot that has arrived costs the same but the quantity is now 7 gm," said Jai Prakash Gupta, who runs a grocery shop at Janbazar
Jai Prakash Gupta, who runs a grocery shop at Janbazar, says there has been a sharp fall in sales of loose cumin powder and a corresponding
rise in demand for small sachet packs
"Cumin powder was Rs 550 a kg a month ago but has shot up to Rs 800 a kg now
The sachets come for Rs 5
Even Rs 5 for 7 gm means these sachets are cheaper than loose cumin powder by about Rs 80 per kg," he said., 03:19A day for TOMATO worship:
Diyas, prayers and praises for red juicy tomatoesAlso flying off the shelves are Rs 5 packs of ginger-garlic paste; the price of ginger has
climbed to Rs 300-350 over the past two months
"Since ginger and garlic are both generally used in equal measure in non-vegetarian dishes, it makes sense to buy these satchets," said
homemaker Gargi Saha from Dum Dum
An addition to pricey vegetables is green chilli, which is retailing at Rs 300 per kg and goading people into buying sachets of green chilli
Abhijit Nandy, who has a stationery shop in Bhowanipore, said his tomato puree stock is exhausted and new packs are yet to arrive
"Small packs and sachets of spices and purees are almost always available at a lower price than the market rate of these products
It may be an innovative marketing policy by big companies
Also once habituated, customers tend to prefer sachets," said Nandy
WatchGround Report: Not just tomatoes, prices of other vegetable too have hit the roof | Consumers react
