Consumers either love or hate cilantro, but for those who can appreciate its ease of use in cooking, the herb has been in tight supply week in and week out in California because of the rain and flooding. Farms growing it in other states, including Texas, Florida and Central Mexico have a good supply since weather has been good. “It’s compensated supply, especially for the East Coast,” said Camilo Penalosa of Infinite Herbs.
Price has gone up, reflecting the situation in California but to keep it on a more even keel, Penalosa sources from different places to keep the dollar amount within an acceptable price range. “These days with the weather being unpredictable you need to have different sources and eventually average out the pricing. We’ve been OK,” he said.
It’s risen back up to its former status after the contamination crisis in late 2015 early 2016. “Cilantro is always on the rise. (Back then) it went down for a few weeks until they felt comfortable with supply again.”
Post the Super Bowl guacamole inundation, cilantro makes its way into spring cooking – including barbecue season. “Cilantro always finds a fresh way in,” said Penalosa. When he first came to the United States about 30 years ago you couldn’t find cilantro in the stores. “Today there’s no store without it,” he said. In a couple of weeks Penalosa be in California to see how things are progressing for the spring for both their conventional and organic supply. “I expect it to be a regular season unless something unexpected happens.”
For more information:
Camilo Penalosa
Infinite Herbs
Ph: 617-319-9253