Home-Cooked Meal Costs Drop Marginally In May 2025; Driven By Cheaper Vegetables And Chicken

The price of home-cooked meals fell slightly in May 2025, aided by a significant decline in vegetable and broiler prices, according to the ‘Roti Rice Rate’ report released on Thursday by Crisil’s research arm.

The report noted that the average cost of a vegetarian thali declined to ₹26.2 in May from ₹26.3 in April this year and ₹27.8 in May 2024. The drop in thali prices reflected reduced costs of key vegetables like tomatoes, onions, and potatoes.

The decline was more pronounced in non-vegetarian meals. A non-vegetarian thali cost ₹52.6 in May, down from ₹53.9 in April and ₹55.9 in the same month last year.

Vegetables & Broiler Prices Ease Thali Costs

Crisil attributed the lower thali prices to a 29% year-on-year drop in tomato prices, a 15% fall in onion prices, and a 16% decline in the cost of potatoes.

These vegetables had seen sharp price rises last year due to crop failures, poor water availability, and disease infestations.

Pushan Sharma, Director at Crisil Market Intelligence, stated that favourable supply conditions helped bring prices down. However, he warned of a possible uptick in vegetable prices in the coming months due to seasonal factors.

He added that strong domestic output might soften wheat and pulse prices further.

Meanwhile, rice exports are expected to rise by 20–25% as global markets respond to India’s competitive pricing.

Chicken Oversupply & LPG Price Hike Influence Trends

A 6% drop in broiler chicken prices helped reduce non-veg thali costs, the report said. Chicken has a 50% weightage in the non-veg thali cost, and oversupply combined with weak demand, due to bird flu reports in Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, and Karnataka, brought prices down.

Despite the declines, the reduction in thali prices could have been larger. A 19% year-on-year increase in vegetable oil prices, caused by higher import duties, and a 6% rise in LPG cylinder prices limited further drops.

On a month-on-month basis, tomato prices rose 10% and potatoes 3%, while onion prices fell by 10%, keeping the vegetarian thali cost almost flat.

A 4% decline in broiler prices from April also continued to impact non-veg meal costs positively.

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