Farmgate price of tomatoes down to P4 per kilo

The farmgate price of tomatoes has dropped to as low as P4 per kilogram amid the oversupply, according to the farmer’s group  Samahang Industriya ng Agrikultura (SINAG). 

“Yes, the farmgate price [between] P4-P5/kilo,” said SINAG executive director Jayson Cainglet in a message to GMA News Online. 

The SINAG official said the price drop is being experienced in Pangasinan, Nueva Ecija, and Nueva Vizcaya. 

The latest per kilo price is far from the earlier reported price drop of P40 as of February. Tomatoes were sold for over P300 per kilo last January. 

SINAG earlier called on the government to implement a floor price on tomatoes to help farmers amid the oversupply.

With the current situation of tomato production in the country, SINAG asked the public to support the farmers. 

“We’re encouraging cooperatives, institutional buyers, and business groups to purchase tomatoes at the farms and buy P10/kilo, at least, para maka break even man lang ang farmers,” said Cainglet. 

GMA News Online reached out to the Department of Agriculture for comment. –NB, GMA Integrated News