While onions continue to bring tears to the eyes, the prices of potatoes will continue to remain stable and easy on the pocket this season, says the Tamil Nadu Agricultural University.

Potatoes are normally sown in the months of September and October (Kadaibogam season) and harvested in December – January. Nilgiri districts are the main cultivation areas in Tamil Nadu, with Kufri Jyoti and Jalandhar being the most popular varieties.

This season, the TNAU has fixed the farm gate price of good quality potatoes at Rs.19 to 21 per kilo. The prices were calculated based on the price fluctuation in the past 23 years at the Nilgiris Co-operative Marketing Society (NCMS), Mettupalayam.

India is the second highest producer of potatoes in the world after China. A regular part of the staple diet in India, the country produced 449 lakhs tonnes of potatoes over 20.60 lakh hectares in 2014-15. Uttar Pradesh, Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh, Punjab, West Bengal, Assam, and Bihar contribute to more than 90 percent of the total production.