Early, prodigious melon production from Arizona and California has not been matched with equal demand. With late shipments from Central America hitting the East Coast and siphoning off sales, prices for cantaloupe and honeydew melons have cooled.
“The melon harvest started about 10 days to two weeks early,” said Greg Cooper of Margot Distributing in Nogales, Arizona. “It's also been perfect growing weather, with extended days of warm weather, and that brought the product on.” With supplies still coming in from Mexico, heavy domestic production early on combined with the pressure from imports has brought prices down. On May 21, prices for a half-carton of 9s were between $4.50 and $7.95 out of the Imperial Valley in California and out of Central and Western Arizona. Prices for a two-thirds carton of honeydew 5s were between $6.00 and $8.95.
“Coming into the holiday weekend, prices are low,” said Cooper. “For cantaloupe and honeydew, prices are a couple of dollars per carton lower than expected.” In addition to Mexico, Guatemala and Honduras continue to supply the East Coast with melons. But as imports ease up, the market should improve.
“Guatemala and Honduras will continue for a while longer, but that product is starting to wind down,” said Ryan Van Groningen of Van Groningen and Sons. “There's not a specific date when supplies from there stop, but supplies from there are slowing down, and more of the East Coast customers will buy from California and Arizona.” In California, where Van Groningen and Sons has melon acreage in the southern part of the state and the west side of the Central Valley, production will be steady down south until the season shifts north in June. Warm weather got the state's growers off to an early start, but recent cool weather could push back the second stage of the state's melon season to a more normal start. In the meantime, Van Groningen hopes the market will improve.
“Right now, the market is depressed,” said Van Groningen. “But it can only go up from here, so it's got to get better.”