Tomato trouble: Big Mac slices off the pricey vegetable from its burgers

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As tomato prices continue to skyrocket, social media is ablaze with meme festivals and celebrity chefs like Saransh Goela and Kunal Kapoor are putting out reels highlighting the agonies of kitchens across India. From cutting out tomatoes to replacing them with tomato puree, Indians have been vocally highlighting on Twitter and Facebook how they’re handling the matter.

But number one was the tomato issue on Friday, when McDonald’s North & East (Connaught Plaza Restaurants Pvt Ltd) said it was unable to offer its burgers and wraps with tomatoes. “Due to seasonal crop issues arising from farm fields in few areas, there are not enough quantities that meet our quality specifications available. To ensure our customers get the best quality they are known to provide, we are restricted to carrying tomatoes at the time,” a McDonald’s India-North & East spokesperson said in a statement. Present.

A taste of scarcity

We repeat that this is not due to high prices. This is only due to the unavailability of tomatoes that meet our quality specifications. The company said it has been able to source suitable qualities in the Punjab-Chandigarh region, where it continues to offer tomatoes in its menu.

“We are working on this issue by using sustainable farming practices including tomatoes grown in hydroponics in a fully controlled environment to de-risk our requirements from the vagaries of the season. We should be able to return tomatoes to the menu soon,” the company added.

Westlife Foodworld, which operates McDonald’s restaurants in the South and West, said only 10-15 percent of its stores had to temporarily stop serving tomatoes. But they still benefit from whatever good supplies they receive. She added that this is a seasonal problem that restaurants and food industries have to contend with every monsoon season.

A senior executive at another fast-food chain said that although the menu remained unchanged, there were challenges associated with monsoons in purchasing tomatoes.

Meanwhile, tomato puree is sold like hot potatoes. A senior executive of a packaged food company said that the company’s tomato puree business has nearly doubled compared to the same period last year. “In the first six days of July, we actually exceeded the monthly sales volume,” said a Mother Dairy spokesperson. Saval tomato puree is available in a package of 200 grams, at a price of $25. Given that tomatoes retail at Rs 140 per kg, customers see value in the mash.