With tight supplies out of California's Central Coast, prices for lettuce from California have remained high. A combination of factors will likely mean light supplies into December, meaning the market will remain strong until at least then.“We have a demand exceeds supply situation,” noted Mark McBride of Coastline Produce. “Highly unusual weather resulted in supplies out of Salinas being ahead of schedule, and they're much lighter for this time of year.” Production out of Huron has been limited by a lack of water this year, and unfavourable weather in the desert-growing regions has thrown off production and quality. That has all contributed to higher prices.
As of November 7, a carton of Boston 24s out of the Salinas-Wattsonville area ranged in price between $11.65 and $16.50. For a carton of Romaine 24s, prices were between $24.75 and $28.55. Stiff prices will likely stick around for at least a few more weeks, noted McBride.
“We're still going to see the effects of the heat into the coming weeks,” he explained. “We're hoping the situation improves gradually, and mid-December is the earliest chance we have to returning to something close to normal.”
For more information:
Mark McBride
Coastline Produce
+1 831 755 1430