(MENAFN- Live Mint) The cost of both vegetarian and non-vegetarian thalis, or meals, declined year-on-year in October, offering respite to households.

According to the Crisil Roti Rice Rate (RRR), the average cost of a home-cooked vegetarian meal dropped by 17%, while the non-vegetarian meal cost fell 12%, driven by lower prices of vegetables and pulses.

The RRR calculates the average cost of preparing a typical home-cooked meal based on prevailing input prices across north, south, east, and west India. The monthly movement in prices reflects its impact on household expenditure. Ingredients tracked include cereals, pulses, broilers, vegetables, spices, edible oil and cooking gas.

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“In October, the cost of vegetarian and non-vegetarian thalis declined 17% and 12%, respectively, year-on year basis as vegetables and pulses turned cheaper,” said Pushan Sharma, director, Crisil Intelligence.

According to the report, the decline in the cost of the vegetarian thali was led by a sharp drop in prices of vegetables such as potato, tomato, onion and pulses. Potato prices slid 31% on a high base as production in rabi season 2024-25 rose 3-4%, while tomato prices fell 40% year-on-year on the back of higher supplies from western and southern markets. Also, onion plummeted 51% on account of higher stock availability from the previous rabi season and subdued exports. Traders have been offloading the rabi season stocks in anticipation of fresh kharif arrivals in November.

Further, prices of pulses fell 17% as imports of Bengal gram, yellow pea, and black gram surged.

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Compared to vegetarian thali, the cost of a non-vegetarian thali fell relatively modestly because broiler chicken prices fell only 6%. Broilers account for about half of the thali cost. The lower prices of vegetables and pulses, however, helped bring down the overall cost.

On the other hand, vegetable oil prices darted up 11% year-on-year owing to higher demand during the festival season. Also, a 6% increase in the price of LPG cylinder limited a further decline in the overall cost of thalis.

On a month-on-month basis, the cost of the vegetarian thali fell only 1% in October, while that of non-vegetarian thali witnessed a 3% decline. Onion and tomato prices slipped 3% and 8% month-on-month, respectively, helping lower the overall cost of thalis, while prices of other inputs remained largely stable.

The decline in the non-vegetarian thali cost was on account of an estimated 4% month-on-month drop in broiler chicken prices amid oversupply.

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Looking ahead, Sharma said potato prices are expected to remain firm in November because of low supplies of the early rabi crop, but may ease after cold storages release their stocks by mid-December. Also, tomato prices are likely to stay soft amid continued kharif arrivals. Prices of pulses may inch up in the near term, reflecting the impact of excess rainfall on kharif yields and the recent imposition of a 30% import duty on yellow pea.“Should the government extend import duties to other pulses, prices could witness a steeper rise,” Sharma added.

He also said that in the medium term, onion prices could see a moderate rise, as excess rainfall in August and September in key producing states such as Karnataka and Maharashtra has delayed kharif transplantation and raised yield concerns.

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