With summer wrapped up and moving into fall, domestic supplies of strawberries are in a transition period.
“Supply right now of strawberries is light. We went through a very heavy period here this spring and summer and right now, strawberries are on the lighter side for the season,” says Charlie Staka of CBS Farms LLC in Watsonville, Ca. “We’re coming to the close to the end of the season in Watsonville and we’re waiting for the Mexican season to start here in November.”
Staka also adds that the summer planted berries out of Santa Maria and Oxnard, Ca. are also coming up now.
Good summer for berries
Overall, Staka says supplies have been ample coming out of California this year. “We had better than expected production this spring and summer and prices have been lower than previous years,” he says.
With strawberry supplies arriving from Mexico at the end of October to the beginning of November, Staka anticipates the volume will look about the same, if not a bit lighter. “Last year they didn’t have as good a season as they’ve had in the past and from what I understand, acreage on strawberries is lower,” he says.
Demand turning upwards
Meanwhile demand for the berry has picked back up again. “We see good demand at this time of year,” he says. “Demand seems to fall off a little bit on strawberries in August but once school starts again, it picks back up again in September.”
All of that means Staka expects that pricing will likely hold for now. “With supplies being on the lower side, we expect it to just stay where it is,” he says.
For more information:
Charlie Staka
CBS Farms LLC
Tel: +1 (831) 763-4401
charlie@cbsfarms.com
www.beachstreet.com