This week was a celebration of the official arrival of spring, just a few days away. Corn, bell peppers of all colors, zucchini, tomatoes, and cucumbers chased the winter chill away. Strawberries, cantaloupes, mangoes (both yellow and round type), watermelons, and honeydews evoked thoughts of warmer days to come. Retailers focused on several different promotions. Special sections for Passover featured horseradish, beets, carrots, leeks, dates, dill, apples, and celery. Gift ideas and floral arrangements for graduations and Mother's Day filled out the seasonal and floral sections of many ad flyers.
Total ad numbers this week were 292,048, a 1% increase from last week's total of 288,391. The total for the same week last year was 30% lower at 224,764. The total number of ads broken out by commodity groups: fruit 149,666 (51% of all ads), onions and potatoes 16,161 (6%), vegetables 116,782 (40%), and herbs 1,835. The number of ads for organic produce was 49,370, 17% of total ads. The following are the prices of major advertised items (3,000 plus ads) this week, compared to the same week last year.
Significant increases in price for fruit this week included red seedless grapes at 44%, organic strawberries (1 lb.) at 16%, and blackberries (5.6-6 oz) at 10%. Significant decreases included Honeycrisp apples at 34%, apple juice (64 oz.) at 32%, Navel oranges (per lb.) at 26%, and cantaloupes at 11%. There were no significant changes for potatoes and onions this week. Significant increases in price for vegetables this week included long seedless cucumbers at 24%, colored bell peppers per each (orange and yellow at 22%, red at 18%), zucchini at 18%, corn at 16%, and on-the-vine tomatoes at 12%. Significant decreases included organic baby carrots (1 lb.) at 14%, mixed mini sweet peppers (1 lb.) at 12%, and green bell peppers (each) at 11%.
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Source: mymarketnews.ams.usda.gov