Tomato farmers in Nueva Ecija are now losing money after the price of tomatoes dropped to P3 per kilo due to oversupply. In the town of Bongabon, more than 100 farmers are currently harvesting tomatoes from approximately 91 hectares of land, resulting in an oversupply.
According to Amelia Camania, a tomato farmer, she spent about P100,000 to plant tomatoes on more than half a hectare of land. She needs to sell them for at least P10 per kilo just to recover her investment. But the price has dropped to P3 per kilo, making it difficult for her to earn a living for her family.
Jackielou Gallarde, Municipal Agriculturist of Bongabon, explained that farmers often plant the same crops when they see good profits from the previous harvest. Because of this, they also harvest at the same time, which causes oversupply. The situation is similar in other towns in Nueva Ecija, as well as in the provinces of Nueva Vizcaya, Pangasinan, and Quezon. On the border of the towns of Rizal and Bongabon, tomato plants can be seen that have already rotted.
