Tomato is the third most important crop in India after potato and onion. There is no definite record of when and how tomato came to India, it was probably introduced by the Portuguese. Tomato is one of the main ingredients used in Indian cuisine. In addition, they are used in salads, ketchup, purees, sauces, and other processed foods. China leads the world in tomato cultivation & production, followed by India and Turkey.

Tomato Production in India

India is the second largest producer of tomatoes in the world. Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh, Gujarat, Odisha, West Bengal, Bihar, Telangana, Uttar Pradesh, Maharashtra, Chhattisgarh, Haryana, and Himachal Pradesh are the major tomato producing states in India. Andhra Pradesh accounts for 20% of the total tomato production in India. Madhya Pradesh contributes 12% and Karnataka 10%. It is followed by Gujarat, Maharashtra, Chhattisgarh, Telangana, and Tamil Nadu.

Tomato Season in India

Due to the increasing demand, the tomato season in India lasts almost throughout the year. Tomatoes cultivation require a warm environment. In India, they are planted in March and April and harvested at the end of summer. After 70 days of transplanting, the plants start yielding. The peak season of tomatoes in India is in January-February and November-December. In some states like Maharashtra and Gujarat, the tomato growing season lasts throughout the year.

Tomato Harvesting and Growing Season in India

Tomato transplanting season starts in June-July and harvesting is done from August to September. Second transplanting is done from October to November and harvesting is done from December to February. The third transplanting season is from January to February and is harvested from March to June. The fourth transplanting takes place from October to November and harvesting takes place from January to March.

Tomato Varieties in India

There are more than 15,000 varieties of tomatoes in the world. 1000+ varieties of tomatoes are cultivated in India. However, only a few are commercially available and others are consumed locally.

1. Arka Abhijith: Arka Abhijeet is a high yielding F1 hybrid tomato variety developed by IIHR Bangalore. It has been developed for the new mandis. The weight of the fruit is about 65-70 grams. Average yield in 140 days is 65 tonnes per hectare.
2. Abhinav: This variety is suitable for long distance transportation, yields 60-65 days after planting. It’s cultivated in Kharif and Rabi season.
3. Namdhari: Namdhari is an early maturing hybrid variety of tomato cultivated in India. The weight of this variety of tomato is about 80-90 grams. The sowing month is from August to October and it is cultivated in almost all the states of India.
4. Rashmi: Rashmi is an adapted hybrid variety. This variety of tomato weighs about 90 grams and the first harvest takes about 70 days from planting. It’s suitable for processing.
5. Vaishali: Vaishali is a tomato variety that produces medium sized (100 g) high quality fruits. It is suitable for the juice and processing industry.
6. Rupali: Rupali is an early tomato hybrid with fine foliage which produces medium sized fruits weighing 100 gm and high quality. This variety is suitable for processing.
7. Arka Shrestha: Arka Shrestha is a high yielding hybrid variety of tomato developed by IIHR Bangalore. The weight of this variety of tomato is about 70-75 grams. It has a shelf life of 17 days and due to which its transportation becomes easy. It’s suitable for both table and processing purposes. Arka Shrestha is cultivated during Kharif/Rabi season and the average yield is 76 tonnes per hectare.
8. Arka Vardan: This is also a hybrid variety of tomato developed by IIHR Bangalore. The weight of these fruits is about 140 grams. This is preferred for table purposes and is cultivated during Kharif/Rabi season and matures after 160 days. The average yield is 75 t/ha.
9. Arka Vishal: Arka Vishal, released by IIHR, is one such variety of tomato which has a large fruit and weighs about 140 grams. This variety of tomato is suitable only for the table. It’s cultivated in the Kharif/Rabi season and matures in 160 days. The average yield is 75 t/ha.
10. Arka Vikas: Developed by IIHR Bangalore, this hybrid variety of tomato has a flat, medium-large (8-90 g) fruit with a light green edge and turns dark red when ripe. This tomato variety is best suited for table purposes.
11. Pusa Early Dwarf: It is a hybrid variety of tomato in India developed by IARI New Delhi. This tomato variety matures quickly. They get ready for harvesting 75-80 days after transplanting. The average yield per hectare is 35 tonnes. This tomato variety is suitable for both table and processing.
12. Pusa Ruby: It is a variety that matures quickly and is suitable for both processing and table. Its average yield is 32.5 t/ha. Pusa Ruby is suitable for sowing in both winter and summer seasons.
13. Pusa Gaurav: The fruits of this variety of tomato are also used for long distance transportation. Due to good quality, this tomato variety is suitable for both trading and processing purposes.

Export of Tomatoes

Tomatoes cultivated from India are mainly exported to Pakistan, United States of America, Bangladesh, Saudi Arabia, Oman, Nepal, Maldives, Bahrain, and Malawi. If you do tomato mandi business in India then we would recommend you to use Bijak. It’s India’s most trusted agriculture trading app where you can easily buy and sell tomatoes by connecting with many thousands of tomato farmers, buyers (commission agents) and suppliers.

We hope that you found this blog insightful. If you wish to know more about similar agricultural commodities, let us know in the comment section below.

Read more: The Indian Tomato Scene & Why Tomato Prices Are Soaring