Watermelons in California have been in ample supply this season.
“I feel like there’s been a good supply and that’s driven the price down—because there’s been an oversupply,” says David Vierra of Vierra Farms in Sacramento, Ca. “It’s a combination of extra plantings and good weather. Anytime you come out of a year like last year, there are more plantings because people are chasing the market. But we also had an extremely favourable growing season this year in California so crops were big on top of those extra plantings.”
While he says volume is still pretty flush, it has slowed down since Labor Day which is standard for this time of year. “We’ll go another month of watermelons and then we’ll be done,” says Vierra, who notes he mostly ships melons around the Sacramento area.
Demand also slowed down
And while demand has been normal, it too has fallen off since Labor Day. “That happens after Labor Day but sometimes we get heat in September here in California,” he says. “And that keeps the demand higher than normal. But this year, it’s cooled down.”
That said, the high level of supply has pushed prices down approximately 20 percent compared to last year. “Pricing has been pretty steady,” he says. “Again, we saw a quick spike after Labor Day because everybody was short but that was short-lived.”
Looking ahead, Vierra is keeping one eye on the weather. “Based on the weather, if you want to sell melons, you’d better call your foodservice people,” he says. “They’re pretty consistent year-round.”
For more information:
David Vierra
Vierra Farms
Tel : +1 (916) 502-2402
dave@davespumpkinpatch.com
www.vierrafarms.com