KARACHI – Tomatoes have become more expensive than chicken, setting a new record — selling between Rs. 450 and Rs. 550 per kilogram, while chicken meat is available at Rs. 450 per kilogram in Karachi.
According to the official rate list, the price of tomatoes is fixed at Rs. 280 per kilogram, but this rate is not being implemented anywhere, not even in discount markets. Shopkeepers say tomatoes are already expensive in wholesale markets, making it impossible to sell them at lower prices.
Vegetable vendors claim that tomato supply from Punjab is limited, and the market is waiting for Sindh’s harvest. Currently, 90% of Karachi’s demand is being met through Iranian tomatoes, while the suspension of imports from Afghanistan has caused further price hikes.
Citizens turned to discount markets hoping to buy tomatoes at lower prices, but even there, prices remain uncontrolled.
A stallholder at Gulshan-e-Iqbal’s discount market said there are no official wholesale prices, and customers demand tomatoes at government rates — but selling at a loss isn’t possible.
The administration of the discount markets stated that stalls selling above official rates have been shut down.
