Economics of organic tomato production
Abstract
Tomato (Lycopersicon esculentum syn. Solanum lycopersicum) is considered as an important commercial and dietary vegetable crop. As it is a short duration crop and gives high yield, it is important from economic point of view. Tomato fruit is a rich source of minerals, vitamins, organic acids, essential amino acids and dietary fibres. Tomatoes are an excellent source of ascorbic acid, a nutrient known for its antioxidant action. It is a rich source of vitamin A also. The fibre in tomato lowers the cholesterol and also helps in removing carcinogenic compounds from the colon. Because of all these, it is a need to produce this crop devoid of any chemicals and it is in this context, the concept of organic farming especially for vegetable gaining importance. It is in this context, a study on organic tomato cultivation for assessing the yield and quality aspects of organic tomato with its economics of production was undertaken.
