Abstract

Most vegetables are perishable in nature, and in that post harvest losses and distribution channel plays a vital role in price fixation of vegetables, especially in tomato which is sensitive to much environment-genetic interaction disorders which may be manifested during post harvest ripening or post harvest inspection. A substantial quantity of production is subjected to post-harvest losses at various stages of its marketing. The quantum of loss is governed by factors like perishable nature, method of harvesting and packaging, transportation, etc. Tomato being a third most cultivated crop, the post-harvest losses is significant in terms of quantity and economic value. This study undertaken in Coimbatore on tomato has suggested marketing loss in the estimation of marketing margins, price spread and efficiency and has used a modified formula for it. It has been observed that a majority of tomato producers sell their produce to the wholesalers facilitated by commission agents at different stages. The aggregate post-harvest losses from farm gate to consumers in tomato ranges from 13 to 26%. It has indicated the necessity of reducing the market intermediaries, for minimizing post-harvest losses and providing remunerative price to the producers. The results have emphasized that efforts should be made to adopt improved packaging techniques, cushioning material at the farm level. The producer’s share in consumer’s price as estimated by old method has been found higher and the inclusion of marketing loss in the estimation of marketing margins, price spread and efficiency has indicated that the old estimation method unduly over-states the farmers’ net price and profit margins to the market middlemen. It is appropriate to use modified method for the estimation of marketing margins and price spread.

Key words: Post harvest loss, price spread, consumer price, marketing margin, marketing loss, marketing efficiency.